


Room to Grow

by swanqueenfic13



Series: Little Luthor [27]
Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: Adoption, Babies, F/F, Family, Family Fluff, Fluff, Light Angst, Pregnancy, Pregnant Kara
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-18
Updated: 2020-01-09
Packaged: 2020-03-07 03:35:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 25,836
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18864883
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/swanqueenfic13/pseuds/swanqueenfic13
Summary: When something crash-lands in the deserts of California, life in the Danvers-Luthor household is bound to be upended.





	1. Crash-Landing

Married life was treating Lena and Kara exceptionally well. After their honeymoon, they returned home to find that no one had adopted any more surprise animals, and their house was in one piece. For Halloween, Lydia convinced them all to dress up as the Incredibles. They spent Thanksgiving in Midvale, then visited again for Hanukkah and Christmas Day. They rang in the new year at Alex and Maggie’s house. Through Valentine’s Day and St. Patrick’s Day, Easter egg hunts and a spring break trip to the Montana house for some skiing with Jamie and Alison, Lena and Kara were rock-steady. Even when they fought over their own workaholic tendencies, Lena’s deep-seated insecurities, and Kara’s stubborn streak, they worked through it. At the end of every fight, they’d kiss each other and remember the vows they took to each other. 

Everything was perfect, and neither was looking forward to something that would rock the boat. It was a warm afternoon in mid-May when something crash-landed into their lives and, of course, upended their easy peace.

 

_ “Supergirl, an unidentified spacecraft has crash-landed in the Colorado desert. You have to intercept before any civilians get hurt. Determine if the occupants are friendly, but stay on the comms. We’re deploying Alpha Desert Team, but they’re at least half an hour out,” _ J’onn warned over the comms. 

“On it,” Kara said, rocketing through the skies. She had been flying a lazy patrol over the city for the afternoon, but it had been a slow day. Clearly, criminals were taking advantage of the nice weather like most everyone else was, including Kara’s wife and daughter who were playing at the park and feeding the ducks. It only took Kara two minutes to cross the state and arrive at the coordinates J’onn had sent.

She paused in the sky, hovering about a hundred feet above the ground, narrowing her eyes in disbelief. There was a small crater in the ground where it landed and a long ditch where the ship seemed to have skidded before coming to a halt, still smoking from entry into the earth’s atmosphere. The ship was about as tall as Kara was standing and twice as long, pentagonal and charred, but the charred outer layer was flaking away in front of her eyes to reveal gleaming silver. Kara immediately recognized the design.

“ _ Supergirl, report back. What do you see?” _ Alex barked over the comms.

“Director, we need a team here ASAP. This is a pod—a  _ Kryptonian _ storage pod. I’m going to approach.” Kara ignored Alex’s and J’onn’s protests and orders to stand down until backup arrived. All she could think about was the possibility of another survivor—another Kryptonian. She didn’t dare hope for it to be someone specific as she landed next to the pod. Kara reached forward to place one palm on the hull of the ship to try and find the seam to pry the lid open. The moment her hand made contact with the smooth metal—Kara had sudden memories of walking through the storehouses in the Science Guild, excited to be able to discover the secrets within—a large split appeared on one face of the pod and it slid open to reveal an empty pod.

Well, it’s not empty, she supposes. There are containers, sure, but there’s no Kryptonians escaping the destruction. She should have known that it wouldn’t have a passenger. This was specifically a storage pod, the equivalent of a U-Haul truck. It didn’t have any life-sustaining capabilities, so even if someone had snuck into this, they wouldn’t have survived the journey. Still, Kara feels a hollow echo in her chest and she feels her lower lip wobble.

“False alarm,” she says, hearing the tremble in her voice. “The pod is empty. It’s just stuff.”

_ “Supergirl, Alpha Desert Team is twenty minutes out. Agent Danvers and I are less than two minutes away from your location.” _ The wind whipping in the background lets Kara know that J’onn is reporting while flying at top speed while carrying Alex.

“ _ Supergirl, do  _ not _ interact with the contents until we can examine them more clearly, _ ” Alex said firmly. “ _ We’re on our way to you. _ ” Kara nods though they can’t see her. Just from her visual observation, she can see some of the small containers marked with the Science Guild and History Guild emblems. The containers had all been jostled in the landing, and Kara could’ve sworn she saw the House of El emblem on something buried in the back of the container.

“Supergirl!” J’onn shouted as he landed, putting Alex down on her feet. Kara hadn’t realized she was reaching towards the pod, reaching in as if to pull something out. She pulls her hand back as if it had been burned.

“Sorry, I wasn’t thinking,” she apologized.

“Kara, you need to listen when J’onn or I give orders like this! What if this had been a hostile? What if it had been filled with Kryptonite or something designed to poison humans?” Alex scolded, grabbing Kara by the shoulders and looking over her as if looking for any shards of Kryptonite Kara had neglected to mention.

“I just thought there might be someone inside,” Kara said, her voice small. Alex quickly felt her anger evaporating. She pulled Kara into a hug.

“I’m so sorry, Kara,” she whispered. “ _ I am so sorry,” _ she repeated in Kryptonese. Kara closed her eyes, forcing herself not to cry. She was at work. She was a professional. She was a  _ hero. _

“Thank you, Alex. I’m good, I’m good. I promise.” She pulled back and gave Alex an unconvincing smile, but Alex let her be, likely sensing that Kara was trying to keep herself together.

“Okay, well then, what can you tell us about this craft, Supergirl?”

“It’s a storage pod, meant to safeguard our history, our research, our art, everything important. It was fireproof, waterproof, insulated against the cold, practically indestructible. Some were even designed to evacuate in times of emergency to remove our national treasures. As far as I knew, they were only meant to move from one part of the planet to another to escape small disasters like fires, storms, and the like. I didn’t think they had space travel capabilities. That must be why it took so long to get here.”

“It could have been seeking out your pod or your cousin’s,” J’onn mused. Kara nodded.

“From what I can see, this seems to be a mixture. That right there is the Science Guild emblem. That one is the History Guild. There’s the War Guild and—that! Doesn’t that look like the corner of the House of El sigil?” Kara said, pointing emphatically. J’onn narrowed his eyes while Alex stayed a few steps back, unable to hover above the pod to observe the way Kara and J’onn were.

“Could be. Once the team gets here, we can start to catalogue this and move it to the desert base for further study. You should return to the city. There’s nothing more you can do here,” J’onn said. Kara nodded mutely. 

“If it’s quiet, you could go be with your family for a bit. Just keep the comms in for emergencies,” Alex said and Kara nodded again, kissing Alex’s cheek and letting J’onn clap her shoulder supportively before she took off back towards the city. Kara flew high up into the atmosphere she she could blame her tears on condensation from the clouds she passed through.

 

Thankfully, the city remained quiet without much more than a small, manageable fire by the wharf. Kara was able to put that fire out quickly before returning to dinner with her family unnoticed. Lydia did ask why it suddenly smelled like a campfire and stinky fish, but Lena just laughed and assured her it must have been a passing car. Kara quickly ran to the bathroom to spray some deodorizing cologne over herself (okay, so technically it had been a gag gift from Lena since it was meant for dogs, but it worked in a pinch). Kara distracted herself from the contents of the pod by playing games with Lydia, helping her get ready for bed, and reading her stories until she fell asleep.

“Do you want to talk about it?” Lena asked gently when Kara finally came to join her in the living room. Lena was curled into the corner of the couch in navy blue sweatpants and a tattered National City University sweatshirt she’d stolen from kara. Her hair was pulled into a messy bun on top of her head and she wore her glasses and striped fuzzy socks. Fish was curled up on top of her feet, perking his ears up at Kara’s approach and shifting to look at her.

“About what?” Kara asked, hoping to put off the conversation. “What are you reading?” she asked as she sat on the other end of the couch, stretching her feet and tucking her toes under Fish.

“ _ The Murder of Roger Ackroyd. _ But you’re changing the subject. Something has been bothering you since you got off duty,” Lena said, narrowing her eyes as she put a bookmark in her book and set it on her lap. Lena exhaled softly. “If you don’t want to talk about it, we don’t have to. I just want you to know that you can, if you want. I’m just worried.” Kara closed her eyes and tilter her head onto the back of the couch. Reaching for one of the throw pillows she’d accidentally kicked off the couch, Kara opened her eyes and placed the pillow on her lap.

“It’s not that. I just… We found a pod today. From Krypton,” Kara said, staring down at the pillow. Just thinking about it brought back that gut-wrenching emptiness in her chest. Lena gasped softly but said nothing, waiting for Kara to lead the conversation at her own pace. “I knew it wasn’t a transport pod. It couldn’t have sustained life inside, but I just…”

“You hoped,” Lena finished, turning her body to face Kara fully. Fish grumbled unhappily as he was forced to shift, laying lengthwise with his snout in Kara’s lap and his back paws and tail on Lena’s. He was practically sinking into the back of the couch as Lena and Kara let their legs tangle and Lena draped a blanket over the both of them, making sure Fish wasn’t completely smothered. Kara scratched behind his ears and his tail thumped lightly against Lena’s leg.

“I hoped,” Kara confirmed, tears in her eyes. “But it wasn’t a Kryptonian, obviously. I was just so… excited about no longer being the last.” Lena nods. She had listened to Kara talk about the burden of being the last  _ true _ Kryptonian many times ( _ “Kal is Kryptonian by blood, but he was raised human. English is his first language, not Kryptonese. If I had been here to raise him-” _ Kara always broke off here, tears and guilt overwhelming her). 

“I’m so sorry, Kara. I can’t even imagine…” Lena trails off and leans forward, offering her hand if Kara wants it. Kara’s hand shakes, but she reaches out and clings to Lena. “Do you want to talk about what was in the pod or do you just want comfort and silence?” Kara shrugged, pondering the question for a few minutes. Lena was content to wait, letting her hand be strangled in Kara’s grip and her lower back grow sore from her hunched over position. 

“Can I hold you?” Kara asked after a bit, looking shyly up at Lena, as if the answer could ever be no.

“Always,” Lena smiled. Fish huffed as he was forced to move again, moving to stand in Lena’s vacated corner of the couch as Lena clambered over and laid her head on Kara’s chest, wrapping one arm around Kara’s waist and the other around her shoulder. Lena tangled their legs together and felt Kara wrap her arms around Lena’s waist, holding her tight. Lena sighed in content, feeling Kara do the same as Fish resettled himself on top of their feet. Lena isn’t sure how long they laid in silence before Kara spoke again.

“It’s a storage pod. We used them to house important artifacts, scientific research, things like that. We had one in my house, too. It held family heirlooms, important research for my dad, legal documents for my mom. It’s kind of like a portable closet that can move itself when it senses danger.”

“It… moves itself?” Lena asked curiously. She cleared her throat. “Sorry, don’t feel like you have to answer that.”

“No, no, it’s okay. Um, the pods were fireproof, waterproof, and insulated against weather. They were equipped with sensors, too, so if it sensed a sudden rise in temperature, moisture, or anything like that, it was programmed to try and find a safer environment. I remember once when I was little, I made it a game trying to set off the pod and watch it fly away from me. After a while, it started registering my presence as the danger and just… took off anytime I came too close.” Kara laughs, suddenly remembering the memory. Her father had been annoyed at first when he couldn’t find the pod that held his research, but he never could be too mad at her.

“That’s… amazing.” Kara could hear the gears turning in Lena’s head as she tried to figure out how to adapt that for Earth technology. Kara left her to her brainstorming, content to just hold Lena for a while. Already, she felt a little better, though it still felt like losing her world all over again.

“I’m sorry, you were telling me about what was in the pod,” Lena said after a while, suddenly remembering. She picked her head up to give Kara a gentle peck on the cheek. “Do you want to keep going? Don’t feel like you have to right now.”

“I don’t know exactly what was in this pod,” Kara sighed. Lena settled back against her chest, the weight helping to ground Kara in the moment. “I didn’t get a good look at it all. J’onn and Alex insisted on waiting for backup to help them move it all to headquarters. Alex is there right now with a team to go through it all, but they sent me away. Told me to take some time. I’m going to go in tomorrow, I think. They won’t be able to identify everything without me. Alex’s Kryptonese isn’t  _ that _ good,” Kara chuckled.

“Alex speaks Kryptonese?” Kara hummed. Lena paused, considering her words. “I’d like to learn, if that’s alright with you?”

“I would like nothing more,” Kara said. Lena shifted so she could kiss Kara properly. After a few minutes, Kara pulled back.

“Sorry, can I just hold you for a bit? I’m just… not in the mood right now,” Kara said apologetically.

“Of course! Don’t feel bad about it,” Lena said warmly, settling her head back on Kara’s chest. “Do you want to watch TV?” Kara nodded so Lena reached for the remote, putting on some cop show Kara loved. Lena just tuned it out, closing her eyes and relaxing as Kara played with her hair. The next thing Lena knew, it was dark and Kara was carrying her to bed. Lena promptly fell back asleep.

 

“So, some of these seem to be history records. We’d like to transcribe them for our records, if you want to help us with that?” The next morning, Kara met Alex at the DEO. Alex had been at work all night and before her shift ended, she was going over  her findings with Kara. Kara would spend some time looking over everything and identifying some of the things Alex and her agents couldn’t decipher before heading to Sunny Start to run a few art activities. “We’ve also got what seem to be some tech, but we don’t know what they are exactly. You probably do, though. Let’s see… oh, there are a few things with, um, your family sigil? We left those for you to open.” Kara inhaled sharply, pausing for a minute. Alex had greeted her in the lobby and was bringing her down to the room where they had moved the pod.

“Thank you, Alex,” she said sincerely. 

“‘Course,” she smiled. “Text me if you need me, but J’onn is also here for when you file the official report later. You ready?” They paused in front of the door. It was locked with a bio-sensor. Only Kara’s, Alex’s, and J’onn’s DNA sequences could open it. The door also required a retinal scan and a key code. Kara put her hand on the bio-lock, stood in front of the retinal scanner and punched in her code, taking a deep breath as the door slid open.

“Ready as I’ll ever be,” Kara murmured. She turned to smile at Alex before walking in as the door closed behind her, leaving her alone in a room with the last remaining relics of her world. Kara took a few deep breaths before approaching the pod. It stood tall in the center of the room and several lamps illuminated it from all angles. Gleaming metal tables were placed in a semi-circle, each littered with varying containers and objects. Kara noted that they had been separated based on the sigil on the outside of each small container.

The first table housed a few relics from the temple. There was a copy of their holy text that Kara remembered studying as a child. She made a note to translate that for Alex later. There was also a painting depicting one of the constellation myths. Kara stared at it for a few minutes, updating the description of this particular artifact on the tablet Alex gave her before moving on.

Kara continued in this way, looking through the history annals from the History Guild, strategic battle plans and antique spoils of war from the Military Guild, and a holographic record of the major pieces of Kryptonian art from the Arts and Culture Guild. The first thing to give her pause was the table with two containers from the Science Guild. One was the equivalent of a tablet, a digital record of the modern research from the time just before Krypton’s destruction. It detailed medical innovations, means of safer and faster transport, and blueprints for common household items. The other was a  _ gavrrigehd,  _ a Codex. A Kryptonian birthing chamber.

Lena and Kara had many conversations about expanding their family. Due to the scarring in Lena’s uterus, her doctors warned she had a very low chance of successfully carrying another child. To even attempt could put her life as well as the life of the fetus in danger. Kara, despite her similar anatomy, wouldn’t be able to carry a child either. Her Kryptonian strength wouldn’t allow for the fetus, untouched by sun and therefore not yet strong, to push and stretch her body. Alex warned them that the lack of expansion would crush the embryo before it even had a real chance.

Adoption was their best chance, and they knew it. Neither really found any fault with the process, especially considering the fact that they had both been adopted. Kara would absolutely still want to adopt, but there was also something appealing about the option of continuing to Kryptonian bloodline. Sure, Clark and Lois had been thinking about having children, but part of Kara was still hopeful. She would have to talk to Lena about this.

Putting down the Codex and shelving any further thought of babies, Kara moved over to the container with the House of El symbol. There was only one box, unopened. The moment Kara put her palm against it, the box opened to reveal a holodex. It was similar to the one that held the scientific records, but as soon as Kara started opening the files, it was clear that this came from her home.

One of the files was a slideshow of images, historic images of her ancestors and even pictures of her parents, her aunt, and her holding baby Kal. Tears sprang to Kara’s eyes as she watched the images roll by. The ache of missing her family grew, threatened to swallow her whole.  _ Go, Kara. We love you. _ She remembered the feel of their arms hugging her goodbye, but the sound of their voices was starting to fade from her memory. Kara desperately tried to cling to the memory, afraid of what would happen when she forgot.

The next file on the holodex was a family tree spanning dozens of generations, followed by a detailed history of the great and illustrious house of El. Kara flicked through the records until she found entries about her father: his birth, his marriage to her mother, the birth of his daughter, his rise through the ranks of the Science Guild. She found her uncle Jor-El, Kal, and even herself.

Kara was startled from her reverie by the beeping of her alarm, a reminder to wrap up before heading to Sunny Start. Kara weighed the holodex in her palm, considering the repercussions of putting it in her pocket and take it with her. Kara had gone so many years without any relics from her home. The only parts of Krypton on earth were radioactive, poisonous to her. Now that she had some real memories, she wasn’t keen on the idea of letting it out of her sight. Sighing, Kara knew it was irresponsible to bring it with her. Not to mention, J’onn would be pissed.

“I’ll be back,” she whispered as she sealed the holodex back in its container. She walked backwards towards the door as if trying to memorize the sight of Kryptonian relics before her, terrified she might wake and discover this was all a dream. 

 

After dinner that evening, while Lydia played for a while before bed, Kara sat down with Lena and told her about her discoveries.

“Kara, that is… amazing, right? You’ve got… a piece of your family back! I mean—wait, no. It’s not exactly—it’s not the same as having your family back. Shit, that came out wrong. I meant it’s like… you have something… I don’t know. I’m sorry,” Lena said quickly. Kara smiled, though her eyes were watering.

“I know what you meant. And I know it won’t ever replace them, but it is nice to have a piece of them back, even if they are only images and family histories. I haven’t even finished going through it yet, I ran out of time. Maybe there’s more. Maybe there are videos or voice recordings. Who knows?” Kara tightened her grip on Lena. They were once again lounging on the couch, though Fish was with Lydia this time. Kara found it much easier to talk about missing her family when she was able to hold onto her new family, hugging Lena or, when she was younger, Alex.

“I’m so happy for you, love,” Lena whispered, squeezing Kara.

“There’s more,” Kara said, voice hesitant. Lena shifted, looked up at Kara and waited for her to continue. “A Codex, a Kryptonian birthing chamber. And I know we want to adopt—and I still really want to do that! But, I started to think… why couldn’t we do both? Like, one child from the Codex… and then one we adopt a while after? I just… and we don’t have to discuss this right now. You can take some time to think about it, if you need. I just… it’s an option, now. We could look into it with Alex and… But, you have to think it over first, of course,” Kara rambled.

“Kara,” Lena interrupted, beaming. “I absolutely would love to have a little Kryptonian baby with you. A little baby with your eyes? Imagine?”

“Or your eyes,” Kara quipped, leaning down to kiss Lena’s nose. “But, you really would want to? I know we’d always talked about adoption—”

“And we still can. Kara, we could adopt a whole brood of kids if that’s what we wanted to do. Lord knows we have the resources, and you have enough heart to sustain a small village worth of children.”

“Hey, don’t count yourself out, miss I-donate-billions-to-charity-monthly. You have the most heart of anyone I know.” Lena blushed, burying her head in Kara’s chest. They stayed silent for a moment, both imagining their home filled with blonde hair and green eyes, dark hair and blue eyes, thundering feet and happy children.

“Are we really talking about this? Are we really doing it?” Lena breathed. A large part of her was terrified. She certainly hadn’t had the best examples of healthy parenting, and she didn’t come from a large family. For a few years, her family was just her and Lydia. The thought of growing their family thrilled her, but it also terrified her.

“I’m game if you are,” Kara whispered, pressing a tender kiss to Lena’s temple. And Lena knew. She knew with absolute certainty that regardless of the challenges they would definitely face, she and Kara would do their best by Lydia and their family. They would approach the obstacles and difficulties head on, hand in hand. 

“Then let’s make a baby,” Lena said, waggling her eyebrows suggestively. Kara laughed and slapped Lena’s shoulder, causing Lena to giggle excitedly. When they had both settled again, Lena continued, “we can talk to Alex about it as soon as you want.”

“What’s your schedule looking like tomorrow?” Kara grinned. 

“I can always make time for our family.”  _ Our family _ . Lena smiled at the sound of that.

“Then it sounds like a plan. I’ll text her to figure out a time,” Kara said, shifting as she reached for her phone to text Alex.

“Can’t wait,” Lena sighed, closing her eyes. She couldn’t wipe the smile off her face.


	2. The Science of the Miracle

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Lena, Kara, and Alex figure out the practical aspects of creating another Kryptonian.

They met with Alex first thing in the morning after dropping Lydia off at school, both practically buzzing with excitement.

“So, you’re telling me that this is a birthing chamber? Like… How exactly does it work?” Alex asked, eyes wide. ‘“Is it like an external womb? Or more advanced in vitro? Something else?” 

“Well, I’m not totally sure,” Kara said, frowning. “Working with the Codex was a highly specialized branch of the Science Guild. I wasn’t technically inducted into the Guild yet, so I don’t really know how it works. The other thing, the tablet? It should have the schematics and we can figure out how it works by studying those.” Kara held out a hand and Alex passed over the tablet.

“Kara, love, deciphering schematics to figure out their secrets is one of my favorite things. May I?” Lena asked, quirking an eyebrow.

“Please. But you’ll need me to translate.”

“I’d need you no matter what if we’re making this baby together,” Lena grinned, pumping her eyebrows up and down.

“Hi, hello, yes, I’m here still,” Alex said, clearing her throat. 

“Oh, relax, Alex. Making a baby with the Codex would be more like us spitting into two vials than us having sex,” Kara laughed, rolling her eyes.

“Not to say that we can’t do both,” Lena added, crossing her arms over her chest and leaning into Kara with a smirk.

“You’re the worst,” Alex deadpanned.

“And yet, you love us enough to help us decipher these schematics so we can potentially make a baby?” Kara asked hopefully.

Alex sighed dramatically but joined them behind the table to peer at the schematics on the screen. “I suppose.” Kara beamed and with a few taps, the schematics were projected like a hologram above them.

“Fuck, I love space technology,” Lena exhaled.

“Me too,” Alex grinned, holding up her hand for a high-five. Kara just shook her head and laughed, muttering something about loving a bunch of nerds.

 

It took a few days to actually figure out how to make the Codex work. It had gotten damaged in the crash, and Lena needed to make some minor repairs. Then, they had to figure out how to operate it. This took well over a week. It would have been quicker if Lena hadn’t been splitting her time between the DEO and L-Corp, but she couldn’t just leave her company to run on its own. They were still rebuilding their reputation from the damage Lex and Lillian had done and Lena was reluctant to leave it to anyone else even for just a few weeks (though she knew she’d have to get over that once it came time for her to take maternity leave with Kara).

By the time they had actually gotten the Codex to work and figured out how to make it work, it was the middle of June. National City was heating up and Supergirl was busy fighting forest fires and rescuing civilians with heat stroke in the desert. The school year was coming to a close and Lydia was getting ready for another summer of camp, going back to her friends and getting ready to make new friends. Lena and Kara still hadn’t brought up the idea of adding a new baby, a combination of nerves and lack of time and focus keeping them from bringing it up. They justified the procrastination since the Codex hadn’t even been ready yet, but that excuse was quickly becoming null and void.

“This is a medical miracle. You realize this, right? Infertile people… partners who are different alien species… Same sex couples… They can all benefit from this one machine. It’s amazing. You’ll make a fortune,” Alex marvelled once they were finished.

“Do you think that’s ethical?” Lena mused. “Copyrighting and profiting from a medical innovation like this?”

“What do you mean? You have to copyright!” Kara exclaimed. “People should know that Lena Luthor is responsible for this! Be proud of your accomplishment and your contributions to the world!” Kara was always trying to help Lena find reasons to be proud of her company and her family name, despite Lex and Lillian’s attempts to destroy that.

“It’s not an issue of pride, Kara. It’s a question of ethics! Nils Bohlin, the man who invented the three-point seatbelt? He convinced Volvo  _ not _ to patent it, costing them potentially billions of dollars! It saved millions of lives. They knew that the life-saving effects of making the seatbelt design open to the public far outweighed the amount of money they could make. And Jonas Salk! When he refused to patent the polio vaccine, people asked why he would give up so much money. He responded ‘could you patent the sun?’ Salk knew that his contributions to the good of the world was more important than his money! How could I in good conscience patent something that could change so many lives?” Lena sat, tangling her fingers in her hair, which had been pulled back while they work.

“Patenting something doesn’t make you unethical,” Alex said, face scrunching up and tilting her head to one side. “A patent is literally just something to make sure you can protect your intellectual property. It makes sure you get credit where credit is due.”

“I can still get credit without making a profit.” Lena sighed. “Besides, I didn’t do this on my own. It’s primarily Kryptonian technology. I just adapted it, so I can’t really take credit for something I didn’t really invent. At most, I used a translated schematic to make some slight changes to an existing technology. It’s like… I was copying a copyrighted work. Someone on Krypton probably patented this! I’m a patent stealer! Oh my God,” Lena gasped, one hand on her stomach as she began to pace.

“Hey, whoa, take a chill pill, Debbie Doomsday.”

“Don’t be mean, Alex. But, Lena, she is right. You’re jumping to the worst possible conclusions. How about we table the discussion of patents for a bit and talk about the practicality of using the Codex to add to our family? Isn’t that the more exciting part of this whole thing?” 

Lena rolled her eyes. “Well, yes, of course it is. But, I have to be back at work by one for an interview. We need a new department head for the med-tech branch, ironically.”

“So, Lena, the ultrasound scans we gave you last time you were here did confirm that your uterus is scarred, and the chemistry is hostile to an embryo, according to the cervical tests you had your doctor do,” Alex reported once they moved to Alex’s office. Lena and Kara were seated on the couch while Alex pulled over a chair and sat facing them, hoping it would feel less formal than a trip to the doctor's office.

“Great, so I’m basically infertile.” Lena said it as if she were trying for casual and unaffected, but the way she cleared her throat had Kara squeezing her hand and rubbing circles on her back. “So Kara carries the baby.”

“Well, while it’s true that her reproductive system is startlingly similar to ours, that isn’t a perfect solution either,” Alex said, folding her hands on her lap. “When the embryo attaches to the uterine wall, the body starts to stretch and shift to make room for the growing fetus. Just like with a human embryo, Kara’s body is too strong because of the yellow sun, so she wouldn’t be able to accommodate the shifting of a growing fetus, even if that fetus is Kryptonian.”

“But why? The only thing as strong as a Kryptonian is  _ another _ Kryptonian,” Lena pointed out.

“Our powers come from the sun. The embryo won’t have been exposed to it at the time of implantation,” Kara answered.

“What if you put the Codex with the embryo out into the sun for the first few days or weeks? Let it grow in strength so it can safely attach to the uterine wall.” 

Alex shook her head. “If we let it grow for too long, transplanting it into Kara’s uterus will be unsuccessful. Her uterus will struggle to make room so quickly. Even when it happens naturally, the pain of the uterus shifting and stretching is noticeable to pregnant people. Imagine suddenly shoving a grapefruit in a space meant for an orange.”

“Ow! I don’t want that!” Kara yelped, one hand dropping to her belly as she made a face. “But, why can’t we just let the fetus grow to full term in the Codex? It’s how most Kryptonians were born. Kal was the first natural birth in a long time on Krypton.”

“I mean, it’s a possibility,” Alex admits. “But, you’d have nothing that made this appear to be a natural birth. Everything about this child’s future existence would be done with fake documents. There’s no precedent for a baby born and delivered from a tube.”

“Someone has to set the precedent!” 

“Kara, love, we can keep exploring that option, absolutely. And when this technology becomes public—which we still need to figure out, by the way—society and government will need to figure out a protocol for this. But, perhaps we can explore other options. Like finding a way to get your uterus ready to accommodate the future fetus while we let it strengthen under sunlamps.” Lena shifted, pulling her legs under herself. The move pushed her a little further from Kara, but she had that look in her eye when she’s envisioning a schematic in her head. She sat a little straighter and fixed her hair so the bun was even tighter, and she held her hands aloft in midair, narrowing her eyes as if waiting for inspiration to strike.

“What if, instead of just trying to make the fetus more Kryptonian, we also make Kara more human? Then, we can allow her uterus to stretch and—”

“Please no more talking about stretching my internal organs, okay?” Kara interrupted.

“Kara, that’s literally our biggest obstacle right now to using this Codex. Now, you know I believe that family isn’t about sharing DNA or whatever, but I know that it’s different for you because of your... Well, your lack of blood relatives. Sorry,” Alex said, wincing. “So, if you want us to continue working on this to help you have a healthy, happy, half-Kryptonian, half-human baby, we need to figure out how to prepare your body for any sort of fetal implantation.”

“Well, to be fair, the uterus barely stretches during the first month or so. At least, I didn’t feel any real pain or discomfort until around five and a half weeks. By the end of the first trimester, it was more uncomfortable, but I’ve had worse period cramps, so…” Lena trailed off with a shrug. “We may be overreacting a bit about this whole early pregnancy uterine stretching. We should do some more research on early pregnancy before making any big decisions. But, I still believe we should look into making Kara slightly more human and making the baby slightly more Kryptonian, at least for the pregnancy. We should figure out some simulations to determine how much sun exposure the baby would need and how long it would maintain any powers or effects once it’s in utero and not in the sunlight.” Lena started ticking things off on her fingers. “Maybe figure out a way to mimic the effects of the red sun long term. Make it portable. Or maybe, not enough to fully take away her powers but enough to make it easier for the fetus to survive.” 

“I can start working on that if you need to go, Lena,” Alex said, writing the list in her notebook. “Kara, you can go, too. J’onn is on Supergirl duty right now. Take your wife to lunch, or something. I’ll call you when I’ve got something.” They nodded, bidding their goodbyes before Kara took Lena by the hand and pulled her out of the DEO to Big Belly Burger (despite Lena’s argument that Kara should start eating better since she was going to be eating for two soon).

 

Lena was, of course, not content to sit and wait for Alex to call her with something. When she got home from work, after sitting down to dinner with her family and reading two more chapters of the  _ Magic Treehouse _ book she and Lydia were reading together, Lena retired to her home office. She slaved over her notes and her sketchpad, trying to figure out a portable way to mimic the effects of a red sun. Kara practically had to pry her away from the office at one in the morning, threatening to pick Lena up and throw her over her shoulder to get her to bed if necessary. Of course, Lena had simply purred and begged Kara to do  _ just that _ .

The next day was much of the same, though Lena actually went into the DEO to collaborate with Alex on this one. Kara was on Supergirl duty, so she could only periodically stop in to make sure her wife and sister were eating enough and drinking water and taking frequent enough breaks. Luckily, Maggie would also call or text when she was free, making sure Alex was taking care of herself, too.

After the third day, they figured that they were ready to start making prototypes of the portable red sun emitters and start testing them. It took another few days to properly balance the energy output required with the need to make it compact and portable. In the end, they came up with a small, smart-watch sized wristband. It resembled a smartwatch enough that no one would think twice of it on Kara’s wrist, and it brought her down to an almost human level of strength. Kara was still stronger than the average human and her immune system was infallible, but her skin, and more importantly her womb, was no longer so strong that it wouldn’t yield.

Alex and Lena calculated the amount of solar exposure the fetus would need before implantation in order to maximize its Kryptonian strength while minimizing the risk for Kara’s body rejecting the implantation for lack of preparation. All three women agreed that it was safest and most optimal to implant the fetus after five weeks of constant exposure to the solar rays (“so it can photosynthesize or whatever it is you do,” Lena had laughed). They had prepared everything they needed before actually making the embryo.

Everything, that is, except talk to Lydia about it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please note I have never been pregnant. I get this information (and shoehorn it into my rough understanding of Kryptonian birthing practices) from the internet, and from a close relative who is currently pregnant and sharing some of the trials and tribulations of the first trimester.
> 
> 6/12/19:  
> Made a few minor edits, including the length of time the fetus would spend outside of the womb.


	3. Conception and Implantation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> From DNA sample collection to implantation to the first ultrasound!

After countless debates, hours reading parenting blogs, and asking their friends, Kara and Lena decided not to tell Lydia about the upcoming addition just yet. It was an experimental procedure, as yet untested. There were an infinite number of ways it could go wrong. It could even take years for it to be successful! Even though both women wanted to be as open and honest with their daughter as possible, they didn’t want to set her up for disappointment or confusion if this process took longer than they thought, if it would even prove successful at all.

“We can just start slowly introducing the idea very slowly,” they compromised. So, together they went out and bought some new books to start rotating into their nightly readings. Some books dealt explicitly with new babies while others had it as a background story plot and still others referenced a baby brother or sister as the sibling of the main character. Lena and Kara hoped that by reading these kinds of stories with Lydia, it would help her start seeing this as a possibility for their family.

While trying to debate the pros and cons of telling Lydia sooner rather than later, they also worked very closely with Alex and her team to make sure everything was looking ready to go. Lena and Winn were constantly running simulations to make sure their calculations were correct and that the Codex could synthesize their DNA well enough to make it combine and create a child. Kryptonians may have the same number of chromosomes as humans, but there were so many other differences that Kara had worriedly asked if her baby would be born with wings or a tail or three heads. Thankfully, Lena’s IQ and ingenuity combined with Winn’s cleverness and perseverance, and Alex’s medical knowledge assured Kara that their baby would likely not have a tail, wings, or multiple heads. Their DNA may differ slightly from a human’s or a Kryptonian’s under a microscope, but those differences would be virtually unnoticeable without DNA sequencing.

“It will be fine,” Lena soothed. “ _ El mayarah. _ We are stronger together and we will work through this together, okay? I promise.”

“ _ El mayarah,” _ Kara repeated quietly as Lena kissed her forehead. “We can do this. We’re ready.”

 

Finally, on a muggy day in late June, they were ready to start the procedures.

“Today is just the DNA collection. I’ll take the samples and then we put them in the Codex and monitor it while the fetus forms,” Alex reminded them. They had been discussing this for days, but Alex was a stickler for formality and needed to follow protocols regarding informed consent. “So, I’m taking some hair follicles, blood, skin, and saliva. Since Kryptonians don’t have eggs or sperm, all it takes is some DNA from the parents to combine and make the embryo.”

“Truly… fascinating,” Lena murmured, a statement she had repeated many times while working on the Codex.

“Hey, Lena, does this mean we get to give you Father’s Day presents next year?” Kara asked suddenly as she hopped up on the exam table next to Lena, bumping her wife’s shoulder with a teasing grin.

“If you’re about to make some ‘Daddy’ joke, please remember that red sun lamps are on so I can and will strangle you,” Alex deadpanned as she snapped on her blue nitrile gloves. Lena snickered but Kara inhaled sharply, choking on air as her eyes bulged out.

“Oh my—you didn’t—oh my  _ God _ , Alex! That is so not what I was going to say! Get your mind out of the gutter. Ugh, no,” Kara coughed, cheeks bright red. She couldn’t even hold eye contact with Alex for more than a few seconds. Lena just bit her cheek, smirking.

“Well, where was I to assume you were going?” Alex scoffed as she pulled over her blood draw cart. “Roll up your sleeves.”

“I was  _ going _ to say that it’s like Lena is fathering our child since her DNA is combining with mine and I’m carrying the baby. It was a stupid joke,” Kara grumbled as she rolled up her sleeves and offered her forearms to Alex for inspection. 

“A stupid heteronormative joke,” Alex pointed out as she felt Kara’s vein, tying the rubber tube around Kara’s upper arm to make it stand out before putting in the needle.

“I know,” Kara sighed, resting her head on Lena’s shoulder to avoid watching as Alex took a few vials of her blood.

“Well, the same could be said for you, love,” Lena pointed out as she rubbed circles on Kara’s lower back. Kara made a soft questioning noise. “I mean, neither of us are donating an egg or sperm, so really either one of us could be seen as the ‘father’ of this child. And of course, we can do Father’s Day gifts next year if you want. As it is, Lydia already uses the day as a second Mother’s Day.” The previous week, Lydia had come home from school with ‘Father’s Day’ crafts, though she had scribbled over the word ‘Father’ wherever it appeared and wrote ‘Mommy + Mama’. The school year ended early this year, before Father’s Day, so there was no in-class event like there had been for Mother’s Day.

“Okay, fair point—ow!” Kara yelped as Alex pulled out the needle, satisfied with the seven vials of blood she drew. She cleaned and bandaged the small needle mark before moving on to Lena, who had much more practice with blood draws than the Girl of Steel and thus had no such aversions to seeing her own blood. 

After drawing Lena’s blood, Alex took the liberty of plucking twenty hairs from both women, follicles included, and put them carefully in specimen jars. Then, they spit into different jars and let Alex carefully scrape some skin cells. By the time they were finished, Alex had dozens of different vials and tubes and specimen jars on her cart, each labelled with their initials and the date.

“Now what?” Kara asked. She knew, of course. They’d been discussing this for ages. Now, Lena and Alex would go into the lab and put the samples into the Codex. They’d supervise the process as it reworked the DNA to recombine it into a new zygote. Then, they’d expose the Codex to the yellow sun lamps in a secure room until it was time to implant.

“Now you guys go to Pam in HR and meet with Ellie from legal. There are some papers you both need to sign to give me official permission to do this. When you’re done, Lena will come tell me I can start the process. After that, all that’s left to do is wait until it’s time to implant.” Alex grinned, waving Kara and Lena off to go fill out stacks upon stacks of paperwork as she wheeled away the cart to her lab. When she said ‘some papers’ she really meant at least a Redwood’s worth of trees full of complicated legalese that it would take Pam and Ellie hours to finish walking them through. “Hurry up and get started so I can start making your baby!”

 

About ten days after the DNA collection, Lena and Kara got a call from Alex.

“What? What’s wrong?” Lena said frantically as they closed themselves in their bedroom. Lydia was in the living room playing with her stuffed animals and hosting a tea party and they didn’t want her to overhear.

“Nothing is wrong,” Alex assured them immediately. “Nothing is wrong, just… an unexpected development.”

“Does the baby have wings and a tail? I knew it would have wings and a tail,” Kara groaned, falling back onto the bed. Lena crawled across the bed next to her.

“Alex, did you hear that? Our baby doesn’t have wings, does it?” Lena repeated nervously. She had certainly teased Kara enough for worrying about three-headed, winged babies with tails, but now she wondered if Kara wasn’t wrong to be worried about that. After all, this was an experimental procedure.

“Could you two, like, chill? Jesus Christ,” Alex huffed. “There are two zygotes. Not two heads, not two wings or tails or, like, scales or some shit. Two completely separate zygotes. Twins.”

“Oh,” Kara exhaled, eyes wide. “Two? Like… like, two?”

“Two,” Lena echoed, voice hoarse. 

“Yes, two babies. Twins. Are you guys, like, are you breathing? Do I need to get someone to check on you?” 

“We… we’re breathing. Just trying to, um… wow. Twins. Okay. Okay, um, are they, like, identical? Like my mom and aunt?” Kara forced herself to get it together. Twins have always run in the In-Ze family, so this should come as no surprise but somehow it still seemed to rock her to her core.  _ Two babies? At once? That seems like a lot. _

“Hard to tell at this stage. We can’t know for sure whether or not they separated in that way because they’re identical or because of the way we programmed the Codex or how it combined the DNA. Basically, we don’t really know. I’ll need you guys to come in so we can discuss some of the details since we didn’t expect this.”

“What kind of details?” Kara asked when it became clear that Lena wasn’t going to be saying anything anytime soon.

“Well, I mean, the initial plan was to implant one zygote after five weeks of sunlamp exposure. But now, there’s two zygotes. Do you want to implant both? Should we implant earlier if you plan on implanting both? If you only want us to implant one, what do you want us to do with the other zygote? Things like that.” Kara could practically see Alex ticking off the questions on her fingers.

“Could we have some time to let this settle in, maybe?” Kara said. She was getting worried about Lena now, easing the phone from her wife’s hand. Lena was sitting stock still in the center of their bed, mouth open and staring at the wall. 

“Yeah, yeah, of course! Just wanted to make you aware. Call me later to set up a time to come in and discuss the changes to our plan. Have a nice night,” Alex said.

“Yeah, thanks, you too. Night, Alex.”

“Night,” Lena echoed weakly. Kara winced as she hung up.

“Babe?” she asked after a moment. “You alright?”

“Twins,” Lena murmured. “That’s… two babies. Plus Lydia. Plus Fish. Plus any other children we wanted to eventually adopt. That’s… a lot.” She suddenly whipped her head around to look at Kara. “That’s a lot! Twice as much!”

“I know,” Kara agreed calmly, taking Lena’s hands in hers. “And that’s why we’re going to have a calm, adult discussion about this and what we can handle and what we need to do. Okay?”

“Okay,” Lena murmured, forcing herself to take deep breaths. “Okay, so what do you think?”

“I think… we should take some time to think on our own, maybe? I mean, it’s a big decision. A big life change. We need to… gather our thoughts.” Kara smiled at Lena and squeezed her hands three times in quick succession.  _ I love you. _

“Kara, please? We both know you do better processing information by talking it out,” Lena said, exhausted. She leaned her head forward to rest it on her and Kara’s entwined hands. “Please?”

“Are you sure? Because we both know that  _ you _ need some time to gather your own thoughts before starting a conversation,” Kara pointed out.

“I know, I know, but everything is just… My mind is spinning out and, like, I can’t even grasp just  _ one _ thought and I don’t… I need to just focus on one element at a time. I need… I need, like, I need you to help me focus and just relax and talk this through rationally and—and—and—”

“Okay, okay, okay,” Kara soothed. “Just come here.” She pulled at a pliant Lena until she was cradling her in her arms, gently floating up the bed until they were sitting against the headboard. Though this was far from the first time Kara had flown with her, Lena still struggled to get used to the sudden weightlessness. Once they were settled, Lena nestled against Kara’s side with her head on Kara’s shoulder and Kara with one arm around Lena’s waist and the other holding hers, Kara spoke. “So, do you want to hear my thoughts on this whole thing?”

“Yes, please,” Lena murmured. Lena pulled their intertwined hands into Kara’s lap and played idly with Kara’s fingers.

“Well, twins run in my family. My mom had a twin, remember? An identical twin. It was really rare at that time in Krypton.” Lena nodded, remembering some of the stories Kara had shared. “And my great grandfather on my mother’s side was a twin. And my great-great grandmother. So… I probably should have known it was a possibility, but twins are kind of a… fluke with the Codex. It was stunning enough that my mom and my Aunt Astra were both born healthy and survived past infancy.

“And… I have to say that I am kind of excited about the possibility of… continuing that kind of… not tradition, exactly, but… having something that connects me to my ancestry, I guess? And I don’t have a lot of biological family left. And I know biology isn’t the be-all-end-all when it comes to family, of  _ course _ . It is…  _ different, _ I will say, because I don’t really have much biological family.” Kara stopped and cleared her throat. Lena squeezed her hand three times and nuzzled in closer to her. “But there’s also the fact that two babies is a lot of responsibility. And it is a financial commitment.”

“The financial aspect doesn’t scare me. I’ve set up a sizable trust fund for Lydia and set aside funds for future children and an emergency fund for our family. My lawyers have made sure it’s untouchable in case my business tanks for some reason. Basically, the whole business could go up in flames right now and we would still be set,” Lena interjected.

Kara smiled and chuckled ruefully. “Still not used to marrying the female embodiment of the Monopoly Man.”

“What’s the point of being filthy rich if I can’t spoil my friends and family?” Lena drawled.

“This week on True Life: I Married My Sugar Daddy,” Kara laughed.

“Technically, I would be a sugar mommy, wouldn’t I?” Lena drawled, turning her head to grin up at Kara.

Kara tilted her head back and laughed. “I guess you would.” She sighed. “Okay, so twins wouldn’t add a huge financial stress for us. But, we both have high-stress jobs and busy lives. Babies require time and energy, so two babies? And they say there’s a huge jump in difficulty from one child to two so going from one to three? That has to be a big jump. We need to be realistic about knowing if we can handle it.”

“Right, but… we have a nanny. Several very good babysitters. We have friends and family in the area. It’s not like we’re alone in this,” Lena reminded her. “I could take some time off, shuffle some duties around, go from five or six days a week to only two or three. J’onn can help you out sometimes and take over Supergirl duty.”

“It would be very cute,” Kara sighed. “You, me, Lydia, and two little ones? Do you think they’d have powers? Probably not. Even Kal didn’t get his powers until he got older. So… No superpowered babies, I guess.”

“I think that’s probably best,” Lena smiled. “Let them develop any powers they may get when they’re a little older.”

“You said ‘they’. Are you using it in the singular since we don’t know the baby’s gender or…” Kara trailed off, trying to keep her voice neutral. 

“I think… we’ll definitely need some help with childcare. Some more babysitters, nannies who have experience with multiples. I’ll have to figure it out at work to make sure things will run smoothly, but I’ve got about eight months or so to figure it out.”

“Just to be very sure that we’re on the same page, we are saying we want to implant both zygotes? Twins?”

“I’m game if you are.” Before Lena had even finished speaking, Kara was squealing and lifting her up as she hugged her and planted kisses all over her face and neck, floating them to hover up above the bed as she kissed a giggling, squirming Lena.

“We’re—having—twins!” She punctuated each word with a kiss, eyes sparkling and beaming with a grin spread from ear to ear.

“We’re having  _ twins _ ,” Lena whispered with hushed reverence, clinging to Kara even though they were barely a foot above the bed. They kept kissing like that until Kara heard a curious Lydia come looking for her moms.

 

In the end, Lena and Alex concurred that they would implant the twins after five weeks under the sun lamp. The babies were each barely the size of an apple seed, hardly able to be seen when examined by the naked eye. According to Alex, and the gynecologist they’d recruited and promptly memory-wiped after a consult, the babies were looking perfectly healthy and normal. Kara had been wearing the red sun emitter long enough that they were able to give her a mild sedative for the process. For Kara, the whole implantation process was over in the blink of an eye. For Lena, it was a stressful hour of waiting and resisting the urge to check her watch.

When they got back home it was to an empty house. Alex and Maggie had agreed to watch Lydia and Fish, explaining to their daughter that Kara needed to have a little procedure done but she wasn’t hurt or sick. They promised to call her every morning when she woke up, a Snapchat before they dropped her off at camp and again when they picked her up, then a phone call before bed. 

Alex had recommended Kara take it easy for a few days after implantation, leading to Lena doting on her wife. Kara was uncomfortable as her body adjusted. Even the tiny little fetuses (zygotes, technically) were a very sudden change for her body and it was rather uncomfortable to suddenly adjust. Lena was patient even when Kara was fussy and whining, demanding foods then suddenly declaring herself nauseous after taking three bites.

“‘M sorry I’m being so terrible,” Kara mumbled sleepily one night. She was already half-asleep, exhausted from a long day of watching  _ Parks and Rec _ reruns while groaning and letting Lena massage her belly to try and relieve some of the cramping.

“You’re not being terrible. Not at all,” Lena assured her softly, also on the brink of sleep. She gently wrapped her arms around Kara and squeezed. Usually, Lena preferred being the little spoon. There was just something so intensely calming about being held, she felt. But since the implantation, Kara had been so uncomfortable and restless that Lena found herself spooning Kara so she could keep her from kicking off the blankets or punching Lena in her restless writhing. It felt nice holding Kara, keeping her safe and warm and loved. “I love you,” Lena whispered, kissing Kara’s hair to reassure her.

“Will you still love me even when I’m as big as a whale, vomiting all the time, and all emotional? Crying and screaming and laughing?” Kara continued.

“I’ll love you always, no matter what,” Lena promised.

“Mmm, love you too,” Kara mumbled before promptly falling asleep. The next morning, Kara didn’t even remember the conversation.

 

The week after implantation, week six since conception, brought the classic nausea and morning sickness. 

“Why is Mama sick all the time? Thought she wasn’t supposed to get sick since she’s a alien,” Lydia yawned.

“ _ An _ alien, sweetie. And she is, but sometimes she can still get sick. She’ll be better soon, don’t worry,” Lena explained as she packed Lydia’s lunch and backpack for camp. Kara would be dropping her off and Lena would pick her up later. Kara still wasn’t going back to active Supergirl duty, but she was going to make an appearance on  _ Ellen _ and record an episode for  _ Sesame Street _ over the next few days. 

“She’s not gonna die?” Lydia asked, fiddling with the hem of her t-shirt.

“Oh no, sweetie,” Lena assured her, quickly spinning and kneeling down, ignoring the discomfort of kneeling in her pencil skirt. She squeezed Lydia’s shoulder and brushed back the loose baby hairs that had slipped out of her braids. “No, baby, Mama isn’t gonna die. She’s just not feeling so great right now. What makes you think she’s going to die?” Lydia shrugged. “Well, if something is bothering me, you know you can talk to me or Mama, right? Or Tia Maggie or Auntie Alex?” Lydia nodded.

“Olive says her mommy is really sick. She’s throwing up lots and lots and she lost her hair and Olive says she’s gonna die. It made me really sad and scared for Mama,” Lydia said after a minute and Lena remembered.

One day earlier in the summer, Lena had run into Olive’s mother at pickup. She was glad to have caught one of Olive’s friend’s moms, she said. She’d been diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor on her spinal cord. They had tried chemo and radiation to shrink it, but it wasn’t responding. Lena had started to offer her sympathies and bumble through her awkward condolences, but Olives mother Sylvia had waved her off and said she didn’t want pity or condolences. She was simply preparing Olive’s friends’ parents for any questions about death or dying. She was going to tell Olive soon and Olive would take some time off from camp, but when she came back, Sylvia knew that Olive would likely be talking about death or dying or illness and that would probably filter into other kids’ homes.

“Oh, honey, I bet it was really scary to hear about Olive’s mom being so sick, right? And now your Mama is sick.” Lena tugged her daughter into a hug. “It is very scary, what Olive and her family are going through. And it is very sad. But Mama isn’t the same kind of sick. Olive’s mom has a very serious illness called cancer. Mama just has a little bit of an icky belly right now, but it’ll go away, I promise. It might take a few weeks, but she will feel better.”

“Promise?” Lydia sniffled, clinging to her mother’s silk blouse. Lena would have to change it before heading to work.

“Promise. Mama will get better. She’ll tell you the same thing when she comes down, okay?” Lena’s shoulder was wet, but Lydia’s grip had slackened.

“That’s right, sweetheart,” Kara said softly. Lydia perked up as Kara came over to kneel next to them. “I just have a little… a little bit of belly trouble. It’ll be better in a while. Auntie Alex is helping me with it.” That much was true. Alex was testing anti-nausea bracelets with Kara while Lena researched alternative solutions like anti-nausea hard candy drops and ginger and lemon drinks.

“Okay,” Lydia said softly, lunging towards Kara for a hug. “Love you Mama.”

“Love you too, sweet girl. Forever and ever and always,” Kara said, kissing Lydia’s hair. While Kara held Lydia, Lena went upstairs to switch out her shirt, putting the wrinkled, tear-stained blouse in the hamper for dry cleaning. She said goodbye to Kara and Lydia, promising to pick Lydia up after their music and singing time, and left for work.

 

By week nine, Kara was hardly ever vomiting. Instead, she was cycling between nausea and being ravenous. For two or three hours, she would be nauseous, then as if a switch flipped she was starving. Kara would scarf down whatever was closest to her until a wave of nausea hit her again and she was back to ginger ale. As annoying as this cycle was, Kara and Lena both agreed it was preferable to the noisy vomiting that was scaring Lydia so much. 

 

“The babies are growing at a nice rate. They’re about the size of a pair of cherries, less than an ounce each. This one right here? Closer to your cervix? That’s baby A. And this little blob right here is baby B,” Alex explained, pointing to the ultrasound screen. It had been about ten weeks since the babies’ conception, as it were, and five weeks since the implantation.

“And when exactly is the first trimester over? We want to make an announcement after the first trimester ends, but we need to talk to Lydia first, of course,” Lena asked. She put one hand on the back of the exam table Kara was propped up on and the other on Kara’s belly as Alex wiped off the gel.

“Generally people say after week 12 or 13 is when the first trimester is over.”

“And you think the babies are healthy? They’re really… they’re good? Both of them?” Kara asked, a nervous tremor in her voice.

“Developing perfectly on track with human babies,” Alex assured them. “Both babies are looking great. Your symptoms aren’t too severe. No signs of fetal distress or anything. You’ve lost a pound or two, but that could be water weight or it could just be from the morning sickness. Everything looks good so far.”

“Okay, but what if something happens? It can still happen in the first trimester without any real… any big reason?” Kara squeezed Lena’s hand and pulled her shirt back down over her belly.

“Most are caused by chromosomal anomalies, but yeah. You don’t have any other risk factors, though. You aren’t getting any infections any time soon. No uterine or cervix abnormalities. You don’t smoke or do drugs or drink. You haven’t been exposed to any toxins—”

“Supergirl gets exposed to toxins all the time!” Kara yelped. “I’ve cleaned up everything from oil spills to nuclear power plants!”

“Your body metabolized that instantly. The only toxin that would affect you is Kryptonite, but there’s none of that in your system. And you  _ haven’t _ been exposed to any toxins since you started wearing the red sun lamp,” Lena pointed out before Alex could jump in.

“Exactly,” Alex agreed with a nod. Kara still looked uncertain. “You don’t have any diabetes, autoimmune diseases, or thyroid disease. And you’re young, so you don’t have  _ any _ risk factors.”

“Except for chromosomal abnormalities! We basically played Rao here! Played God, whatever. We combined our chromosomes and we don’t know what kind of abnormalities they’ll have!” Kara jumped up and started pacing. “So many things could go wrong!”

“I know, love. It’s terrifying,” Lena whispered, taking a few steps towards Kara with her hands outstretched. “This is absolutely terrifying and I almost went mad when I was pregnant with Lydia. There’s an infinite number of things to go wrong, but there’s also an infinite number of things that could go right. We’ll feel the babies kick. Hear their heartbeats. Fight over names and design a nursery. All the cute baby clothes. Maybe they’ll have your eyes or maybe they’ll have mine. Maybe they’ll have powers and maybe they won’t, but we have so much to look forward to.”

“I can also do an amniocentesis if you like. Take a small sample of amniotic fluid to see how they’re developing, check for chromosomal abnormalities, that kind of thing,” Alex offered. “We did one at five weeks before implantation, of course, but if it would settle your mind, we can do another right now.”

“But the amniocentesis also has a risk of miscarriage.” Kara’s head whipped around to widen her eyes at Lena.

“Less than 1% but… yeah,” Alex sighed. “Somewhere between 1 in 200 and 1 in 400.”

“Well, then what do we do?” Kara asked in a small voice.

“That’s… we have to decide. It really isn’t as dangerous as it used to be,” Lena pointed out. “Is it worth it to soothe your anxieties when weighed against a miniscule risk?”

“I’ll step out. You let me know when you decide?” Alex said a little awkwardly, nodding once when Lena murmured her assent.

“I think we should do it,” Lena said as soon as Alex had stepped out. “The risk is small and when weighed with your anxieties? I think the benefits outweigh the risk.”

“But if it does cause a miscarriage?” Kara shot back, running a worried hand through her hair as her other sat on her hip. “How could I ever forgive myself?” Lena sighed.

“Kara, babe, love of my life,” she finally said, taking Kara’s hands. She stood in front of Kara and kissed her knuckles. “Sweetie, I love you so much and I will stand behind whatever choice you decide. This is your body carrying these babies. You are the one doing the heavy lifting, so I will support any choice you make, understand?” She kissed the palms of her hands. “You want to leave it and avoid the risk? We’ll do that and we’ll keep finding ways to manage your worries.” She kissed Kara’s wrists. “You want to know for sure? I will hold your hand the entire way and we will share the blame should anything terrible happen, okay?”  She pulled Kara close and placed Kara’s hands on her waist, resting her arms on Kara’s shoulders. Lena leaned up on her toes to plant a quick kiss on Kara’s lips. “ _ El mayarah. _ ”

“ _ El mayarah, _ ” Kara repeated softly, dropping her forehead onto Lena’s shoulder. They stayed there for a few minutes, silently holding each other until Kara spoke. “Rao protect them, but I want the amniocentesis. I need to know for sure.”

“Then that’s what we’ll do,” Lena whispered, kissing Kara again. “I’ll go get Alex.”

The procedure itself was quick. They increased the red sun lamps in the room, gave Kara a local anaesthetic, and drew the fluid. Alex had insisted on setting up a curtain so as not to scare Kara even more by letting her watch the needle get stabbed into her uterus. Then, Alex took it straight to her lab to examine. She was back by the time the anaesthetic was wearing off, beaming.

“Two perfectly healthy babies! No chromosomal abnormalities at all. You wanna know the sex?” Alex announced, bouncing on her toes.

“No!” Kara shouted at the same time Lena said “absolutely!”

“Uh-oh,” Alex whispered. “I’ll let you figure that out between yourselves.”


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ta-da! *Trumpet fanfare played on an off-key kazoo*

“Gender is a social construct! And a very  _ human _ one, at that. And a very  _ white human _ one, too. Like, white western, European human construct,” Kara shouted. They’d had to take their discussion (both refused to call it so much as a spat) about finding out the sex of the babies back home. They were in the car, currently on their way to pick up Lydia from camp.

“Yes, absolutely, I agree,” Lena nodded. “ _ But _ , it won’t hurt to find out the biological sex of the babies, will it? I’m not saying we need to raise them in all pink or all blue. No big gender reveal parties with those stupid… guns or glitter themes or whatever. It’s simply impractical not to find out anymore!”

“Oh, really? Impractical?” Kara scoffed. Lena’s cheeks colored and she gritted her teeth.

“I mean, everyone finds out now and there’s more pink and blue stuff than there is green, yellow, or gray. It’s harder and harder to find cute gender neutral clothing. Besides, if you’re worried about locking the babies into gender roles, we just won’t tell anyone else!”

“Why do you want to know so bad?” Kara sighed, exasperated.

“Knowledge is power! Why  _ don’t _ you wanna know?”

“Gender is stupid! Humans get so caught up in it, especially here in the US!’

“I know that!” Lena shouted. They both sat there stewing in silence as they pulled into the camp parking lot. As soon as they both stepped out of the car, they plastered smiles on their faces. They maintained their smiles, listening excitedly as Lydia chattered on about her day and getting her set up in the bath to wash off the grime of the day. They only gave her a quick rinse for now, just enough to get the dirt and sand off. She would take a full bath with soap and bubbles and washing her hair later in the evening as per her normal bedtime routine. Once she was dried off and in some clean play clothes, they set her up in her playroom with an old baby monitor to keep an eye on her. Once they were back in their bedroom with their door closed and the monitor on, they resumed their conversation.

“I just…” Kara sighed. “Please, make me understand why you care so much about finding out.”

“I told you: knowledge is power,” Lena said shortly. “Why don’t you tell me why you  _ don’t _ want to know?” she challenged.

“I mean, I just… When I first got to Earth, I had  _ so _ much to learn. I had to learn the language, lose my Kryptonian accent… I needed to learn pop culture so I wouldn’t stand out. I had to relearn math and science to fit with Earth’s understanding and physics. But I also… I had to learn what it meant to be a  _ girl _ on Earth. I mean, Krypton did have some gender stipulations. Like, for the most part, girls took their father’s full name as their last name while boys only took the family name. That’s why I’m Kara  _ Zor-El _ and my cousin is Kal- _ El _ rather than Kal  _ Jor _ -El. But that was really a tradition that was already starting to die out. Half of the young people I knew took only their family name, regardless of gender.” Kara exhaled sharply. “I just… Americans have a fucked up understanding of gender that made it really hard for me to adjust my first year. It’s why I stayed in homeschooling an extra year. I could have started the fall of eighth grade, but I waited until ninth grade to give me more time to adjust. I just don’t really want that for our babies.”

“I get wanting to protect them from the horrors of the social gender construct, but we can’t just will it away! The gender binary is still going to be there in seven months when they’re born. What does it hurt to know?” 

“What does it hurt to be surprised?”

“Nothing, I guess. I just… Surprises have never been very good for me,” Lena shrugged. “First surprise I remember was when Lionel Luthor said he was taking me to meet my new family. Then there was the surprise of a new nanny when Lillian fired my favorite nanny.  The surprise of Lionel dying… the surprise of boarding school… the surprise of Lex’s insanity… the surprise of Lex’s crimes… the surprise pregnancy… surprise death of my best friend… surprise preterm labor… lots of surprises. Not so many great ones.”

“Not all surprises are bad,” Kara countered. “Surprise birthday parties… surprise date nights… surprise weekend getaways…” She paused, reading Lena’s face. “Can we compromise? We find out, but we still plan a more neutral nursery and everything? Like, not all grays and greens and yellows, though. Maybe a whole… a whole  _ rainbow _ . All the colors!” Kara bounced on her toes now, imagining the colorful room. She couldn’t wait to start designing the nursery, painting the walls, decorating everything.

“Really?” Lena said hopefully. “You’d really be okay with that?”

“As long as you’re open to let our babies make their own choices about their gender expression and identity as they get older.”

“Oh my God, of course,” Lena said quickly, stepping closer to Kara. “And—and—and I want to hear  _ all _ about gender presentation on Krypton. We can raise these kids with more of a Kryptonian understanding than a human one, in as much as we can, of course.” Kara pulled her into a kiss, leading her backwards onto their bed until Lena was straddling her and kissing her. Their hands were roving, getting bold. Kara’s hand was skating just under the edge of Lena’s breast, just starting to dip her hands under the cup of the bra when the baby monitor crackled to life.

“ _ Mommy, Mama! Come play with me, I’m bored,” _ Lydia shouted. On the monitor screen, they saw Lydia was set up with her matchbox cars and her race track, the end credits to one of her cartoons playing on the TV.

“Duty calls,” Lena laughed.

“Wait, wait, wait!” Kara whispered frantically, tugging Lena back to her lap. “How long do you think she’ll play before she comes looking?”

“Mmmm, those pregnancy hormones got you all worked up?” Lena teased. “Knowing our daughter, we only have about two minutes.” Kara groaned and Lena laughed. “Once she is asleep, I promise to make it worth your while.”

“That’s too long,” Kara whined, still clinging to Lena’s hand as she stood. Lena tugged Kara to her feet and kissed her cheek.

“You need me to keep Lydia busy for a few minutes while you… take care of it?” Lena’s voice was teasing but her offer was sincere. She certainly remembered the agony of that first trimester, her sex-drive kicked into over-drive all the time.

“Ugh, no. Just let me go pee and splash some water on my face.” Kara laughed ruefully. “Want me to call Alex and find out?”

“Call and tell her we’ll find out at our twelve week appointment. Give me a chance to practice with little surprises.” Lena winked.

“Baby steps, babe,” Kara called after her with a laugh. “Baby steps,” she repeated, softer now. She smiled, excited at the prospect of a rainbow nursery for their twins, of the chance to raise her babies with as many Kryptonian traditions and beliefs as possible.

 

Once they knew the sex of the babies, Lena and Kara were planning on telling Lydia. They’d bought her a calendar and marked the due date for the babies so she could keep track and count down to when they would be born. They’d searched every parent website they could find with suggestions for the best way to tell her and Kara and Lena agreed they were as ready as they could ever be. The evening after Kara’s twelve-week appointment, after dinner and before bedtime, they would sit Lydia down to tell her.

“I’m so nervous,” Lena whispered as they sat in the medbay waiting for Alex to get back from a call to intervene in a fistfight between two aliens near the wharf. They had cleared out by the time Alex got there, so she was on her way home.

“You and me both,” Kara admitted. Lena smiled and leaned into Kara’s shoulder.

“I mean, I don’t know why we even need to ask about the sex. No Y chromosomes means they’ll both be XX, right? Female? At least biologically, if not identity-wise,” Lena mused.

“Eh, not exactly. Kryptonians have neither X nor Y chromosomes. We have something more like… I mean, I guess they’re like W and Z chromosomes? Different shapes, different combinations. Two W’s was more likely to form a vagina. Two Z’s was more likely to form a penis. One of each meant the person had an equal chance of developing either or developing both,” Kara explained. “I have both W and Z. So, assuming the Codex scrambled our DNA in order to make it compatible, the babies could technically be born genetically male or female. At least, I think so.” Kara shrugged.

“And you didn’t mention this until now?” Lena yelped. “The only reason I was reasonably calm while waiting two weeks was because I assumed they were going to be genetically female!”

“I… didn’t think of it! My exact genetic makeup never exactly came up,” Kara said defensively, holding up her hands in surrender when Lena glared at her.

“Alright, alright, sorry I am back!” Alex said, bursting into the room. She had already put on her lab coat and immediately scrubbed her hands as she continued speaking. “The call was a bust, but we had to check it out. You know how it is.”

“Yeah, no it was fine. Gave us a nice chance to  _ chat _ so Kara could tell me a few things she forgot to mention about her genetic makeup,” Lena said testily, though Kara hoped she wouldn’t be mad once they got to hear the baby’s heartbeat again and found out the sex.

“Oh...kay,” Alex said warily. “Kara, I need to weigh you and check your vitals for the chart.”

“Can’t we skip that and get straight to the good part?” Kara begged. “I wanna hear their heartbeats and we need to know the sex!”

“Yeah, no, see, here’s the thing,” Alex sighed. “I need to do the boring stuff because as soon as you hear their little heartbeats and know the sex, you’re not going to be able to pay attention. Let’s just get it done quick so we can move on to the good stuff. So, stand on my scale and let me get the pressure cuff on you.” Kara grumbled but obeyed, standing on the scale to see she’d gained a pound and a half. Alex assured her that was a perfectly normal, healthy weight gain as she took her vitals, logging them in the chart. “And now for the fun part. Lift your shirt please, Kara.” Alex tucked towels into Kara’s waistband to protect her clothes from the gel. “Cold gel.” Kara startled when Alex squirted the gel on her belly, rubbing it around with the ultrasound wand. “And… there is the heartbeat for baby A. See? Baby A is this little blob right her, closer to the cervix.” They listened to the rapid whooshing of the heartbeat and cooed at the seemingly amorphous blob.

“And Baby A is…” Lena trailed off.

“A girl,” Alex grinned. “At least, we are pretty sure. One X chromosome, courtesy of Lena, and one W chromosome courtesy of Kara. Both were slightly mutated to better match up, but we are assuming that baby A will end up with a vagina.”

“A girl,” Kara gasped. “Lydia is gonna have a sister.”

“Oh my God,” Lena whispered, awestruck.

“And this… is baby B.” Alex moved the wand and pointed to the blob. This heartbeat was just a bit slower than the other, though Alex had already assured them this was perfectly normal. “Perfectly healthy. Just a bit farther from the cervix. And baby B is your new son! One X chromosome, again from Lena, and one Z chromosome! Based on our predictions, baby B will be born with a penis.”

“A boy. I’ve never had a boy,” Lena remarked quietly, eyes wide.

“A… a boy…  _ and _ a girl?” Kara stammered.

“A boy and a girl,” Alex confirmed, beaming. Lena clapped a hand to her mouth, eyes filling with tears.

“Oh my God. Oh my  _ God. _ Oh my  _ GOD! _ ” Kara shrieked, beaming. “Lena! A boy  _ and _ a girl!”

“This is… wow,” Lena said, voice thick. The tears were falling thick and fast now. “My f-family,” she stammered before shaking her head, grinning widely as she cried.

“ _ Our _ family,” Kara whispered, “is growing. We’re  _ growing. _ This is amazing!” she squealed. “I can’t wait to tell Lydia tonight.”

“Me too,” Lena sniffled, reaching out to put her hand on Kara’s belly, on her son and daughter. She couldn’t wait to share this with Lydia.

 

Kara was practically buzzing with the news, far too excited to be able to keep the secret from Lydia, so Lena picked her up from camp while Kara picked up pizza and ice cream for dinner, a special treat to help make sure Lydia was in a good mood. Lydia wasn’t particularly dirty from camp, so they ate as soon as she got home rather than rinsing her off first. Kara ate more than her fill despite being a bit nauseous, hoping to keep her mouth full to keep her from smiling too much or spilling the secret.

“So, Lydia, we wanted to talk to you about something important before we have some play time,” Lena said carefully as they followed her into the living room. Fish was sitting on the couch and perked his head up at their approach.

“Am I in trouble?” Lydia asked, scrunching up her nose.

“Oh, not at all!”

“No, no, sweetie, it’s a good thing! A  _ very _ good thing,” Kara promised with a little giggle. As soon as she sat on the couch, Fish scooted over and rested his head on her lap, ear pressed to Kara’s belly. She was just starting to show, but the little bump could just as easily be the remnants from a big lunch to the unaware. Kara cooed over Fish with his ear already trained on the babies while Lena and Lydia settled on the ground in front of the coffee table, both facing Kara. Lydia still looked a little uncertain, suspiciously looking at both of her moms.

“So, we just wanted to tell you something… exciting. Me, your Mama, and you are… going to have some new additions to the family!” Lena smiled.

“We’re doing math?” Lydia sighed exasperatedly. “But it’s  _ summer _ ! School doesn’t start until next week! This isn’t fair.”

“No, no, no,” Kara laughed. “Not that kind of addition. I think your Mommy was trying to say that we… are going to have some new family members. I am… pregnant. You know what that means?” 

“It means you got a baby in your belly. Did you get it from swallowing a watermelon seed? That’s what Tucker said,” Lydia answered promptly.

“Actually, sweetheart, she has  _ two _ babies in her belly,” Lena added.

“So she swallowed  _ two _ watermelon seeds?” Lydia gasped.

“Lydia, no,” Lena laughed. “Mama didn’t swallow any seeds. That’s not where babies come from.”

“Well, where  _ do _ babies come from?” Lydia asked quizzically, head tilted to the side. Lena should have predicted that kind of question, but it caused her to stop in her tracks. Lena had always prided herself as a scientist, as someone who would teach her child about sex as a natural act, avoiding the shame and stigma it often came with. She wanted to be one of those parents who knew the age appropriate language and the best ways to explain things. She wanted to be prepared and concise and calm. Unfortunately, Lena was none of those things in that moment. Lena was flustered and blushing and desperately trying to avoid using the words ‘sperm’, ‘ovary’, or ‘vagina’ in front of her daughter.

“Um, well…” Lena stammered. Kara’s eyes bulged.

“Uh…” she said. “Babies… well, I mean… it was different for me and Mommy because I am… I’m from a different planet, remember?” Kara finally said, looking to Lena. Lena just nodded for her to continue. “So we had to go to a doctor who helped us, um, combine our… our… you know DNA?”

“Unh-unh,” Lydia hummed, shaking her head and stifling a yawn.

“It’s the stuff we’re made of,” Lena jumped in, grateful to be able to feel like she was pulling her weight in this conversation. “It tells our bodies how to grow and function. It makes every part of your body and it’s unique. Yours is similar to mine because you were born from my DNA mixed with your dad Jack’s DNA. The babies in Kara’s belly—technically it’s her uterus because that’s the organ in her belly where the babies are growing—are made of her DNA and my DNA.”

“But how does the DNA get there?”

“A doctor put them together in a special tube.”

“Does a doctor always have to put it in a tube?” Lena bit her lower lip. She  _ really _ wasn’t ready for a sex talk right now.

“Not always,” Kara jumped in. “There are a lot of different ways to make a baby, and we can talk about that another time. For now, we’re talking about the babies that are growing in my belly—my uterus—right now. And for these babies, the doctor put them in the tube to try and make a baby, but we got two! Isn’t that exciting?” Kara desperately hoped Lydia would drop this topic.

“But why?”

“Why what, love?” Lena asked.

“Why do we have two babies instead of one?”

“Sometimes it just happens like that. Did you know my mom had a twin? She was my Aunt Astra. They looked  _ exactly _ the same, except my aunt had this streak of white in her hair! When they were little, my mom dyed a streak of her hair white so they would always match.” Kara sounded wistful as she remembered Astra recounting their tales of switching places in school or to trick their parents.

“Will the babies look the same?”

“They’ll be similar, but not totally the same. Their DNA is different. Actually, one of the babies will be a boy and the other will be a girl. So  _ you _ , lucky lady, are going to have a younger brother  _ and _ a younger sister. Isn’t that exciting?” Lena beamed at Kara and squeezed her hand.

“Uh, yeah, I guess.” Suddenly, Lydia was shy, fiddling with the carpet fibers beneath her.

“Lyd, it’s okay if you aren’t super excited right now,” Kara confided, sliding onto the ground to face her across the coffee table from Lydia and Lena. Fish made a disgruntled noise but stayed on the couch. “It can be a little scary, maybe. And you can have some time to think about it if you want. We just want you to know that having new babies in the house will never mean that we love you less. We love you  _ so _ much and we always will. And we have some time! The babies will be born in the middle of March next year, some time around March 24th, but we aren’t totally sure. We got you this neat little calendar with the day marked on it so you can see when it’s getting closer.” Lena reached behind her to grab the calendar they had bought. 

“Yeah, see? We circled it in red and put the words ‘Babies Due!’ right here,” Lena explained. “And we can keep track of other important stuff on here if you want! First day of school, birthdays, holidays, stuff like that. And since we’ve got about six months until the babies are born, we have plenty of time for some special adventures, just you, me, and Mama, right?”

“Just us?” Lydia asked quietly, taking the calendar in her hands. They had ordered it custom printed with pictures of their family from each month, and it spanned from August of this year to July of next year rather than following the typically January-December calendar model.

“Just us. We’ll plan little adventures and mark them on the calendar, okay? And when it gets closer, we’ll have a party for the babies so we can get some of the baby things from family and friends. We’ll paint the babies’ bedroom and you can help us do all that if you want.”

“But we don’t want to overwhelm you,” Kara interrupted. “So, just remember that Mommy and I love you very much, and we are excited for when you get to meet the new babies, okay? Do you want to have some time alone to think or play?” Lydia nodded, rubbing her eyes sleepily. “Okay. Twenty minutes until bath time?” She looked to Lena, who nodded. “Okay. We’ll be in the kitchen if you need us.”

“We did well, right?” Lena whispered nervously, folding her arms over her chest as she paced in the kitchen. “I mean, we didn’t make her feel bad because she wasn’t immediately excited. We didn’t… we reminded her we love her and this isn’t going to make us love her less. We gave her the calendar, we told her some ways we could include her in the whole thing… We did well, right?” Lena’s voice had gotten high-pitched and squeaky.

“As well as we could do. I mean, we remembered what the advice websites said. It might just take her a little time to warm to the idea. She’s got six whole months to get used to it,” Kara pointed out, though she was also biting her nails. “I mean, all we can do is wait now, right? She knows she can talk to us if she’s worried about it. She has time. We will… we’ll all be fine. In time.”

“Time… waiting… I can do that,” Lena murmured nervously. She wrung her hands. “I’m just… I’m just gonna go and work on some of my projects while we wait, okay?” She stood.

“Why don’t you bring that back to the kitchen instead of hiding in your workroom?” Kara suggested hesitantly. Lena’s workroom had been a compromise, giving her the space she needed to work things out while keeping her in the house rather than running back to the office when she needed space.

“I don’t  _ hide _ ,” Lena snapped before pinching the bridge of her nose. “Sorry. Yes, I can work on it out here in case Lydia wants to talk to us or ask any questions.” After a few minutes of Lena distractedly tinkering and Kara typing on her laptop, Lydia knocked on the doorjamb, hovering nervously in the doorway to the kitchen. 

“Mommy? Mama?” she asked quietly. 

“Yeah, baby?” Lena asked, turning her body away from the counter and towards Lydia. This was clearly the right call as Lydia quickly ran over and climbed up onto Lena’s lap, resting against her shoulder. 

“What if you don’t have time for me anymore?”

“Oh, honey, we’ll always make time for you,” Lena assured her. 

“But in the book we read last week, Lilly the mouse said her baby brother Julius took up all of her mommy and daddy’s time! And there will be  _ two _ babies! Plus you’re always working. What if you forget about me?” Lydia’s voice was small and unsure. Kara slid from her chair and moved to stand in front of Lena and Lydia, gently resting her hand over Lydia’s.

“Babies do require a lot of time and care, it’s true,” she nodded and saw Lydia’s lower lip trembled. Quickly, she continued, “ _ but _ , never will we ever, ever,  _ ever _ forget about you. We’re going to have lots of help, and we’ll find ways to spend time with just you. Like when the babies are sleeping, the three of us can have some fun baking in the kitchen or painting or something, right? And I know we both work a lot, but we’re going to start taking more time off to spend with you and to prepare for the babies. And once the babies are born, we’ll be taking even more time off.”

“ _ Plus _ ,” Lena added, “if you ever feel lonely, your Auntie Alex and your Tia Maggie can take care of you. Eliza might come down for some visits. We can arrange lots of special play dates with your friends. Our routines will have to change a little bit, but we’re going to do everything we can to make it easy for you and take care of you, too, okay?” Lydia sniffled but nodded against her.

“Anyway, by the end of the book, Lilly realized how much she loves her baby brother, right? It might take some time, but I think you’ll love the babies,” Kara added with a conspiratorial wink.

“I guess so,” Lydia hummed. “Can we read that book again before bed time?” Lydia rubbed her eyes with the heel of her hand.

“We absolutely can. But first… a bath,” Lena said dramatically as Kara swept Lydia off her lap and easily carried her over her shoulder. Lydia giggled and squirmed but Kara had a firm grip on her as they headed up the stairs and towards the bathroom, Lena following with a lazy smile and half-hearted eye roll. Fish just stretched out his legs, taking up more than half of the couch now that his people had gone upstairs. He would join them, as he always did, once the tub was drained and Lydia was curled up in bed with Lena and Kara by her sides reading her a story, jumping onto the end of her bed and curling around her feet. That night as Kara read, she rested one hand on her belly and imagined how Fish would react to his two new siblings.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know, I know... It's been a while! Rest assured, I don't abandon works lightly so I do plan to finish this one. Next update will be about second trimester life... how the babies are growing, how they're starting to adapt and get ready for the babies, Lydia's adjustments, planning a baby shower, and lots more! When will it be posted? ... Anywhere from an hour to... eleven months. Somewhere in there sounds about right ;D


	5. Upwards and Onwards

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for your patience! Enjoy this chapter!

As the first trimester slid into the second and Lydia grew comfortable in the first grade, Lena and Kara decided it was time to start changing their own lives to better prepare for the babies. Kara started by quitting her job.

“But you love working at the preschool!” Lena had said when Kara first brought it up. “I know you’ve taken some time off recently because of your super schedule, but it was important to you that you worked there. What changed?”

“Life did.” Kara shrugged. “As my super gig got busier, I found it less enjoyable to work at the preschool and more like a chore. I mean, don’t get me wrong. I loved the kids and I thought the activities were fun for me and for them, but I just don’t get that same… spark from it all. It doesn’t make me as happy as it used to.”

“Well, darling, I am all for your happiness, always,” Lena drawled. She paused, worrying her bottom lip. “But you can’t be Supergirl right now, so what will you do while I’m at work and Lydia is at school?”

“Oh!” Kara exclaimed, sitting up straight on the couch. She beamed at Lena. “That’s my other news! I’ve applied to an online grad school course through National City University for journalism! I’m going to be a writer!” Lena frowned.

“But wasn’t it you who once said that journalism is just telling the story after it happened? And that it didn’t help anyone before the bad thing happened?”

“Well, yeah, but—”

“And why did you hide this from me? You must have known about the application for a few weeks at least,” Lena interrupted. She tried to keep the hurt from her voice but based on the way Kara’s expression fell, she hadn’t quite managed that.

“I just… I didn’t mean to hide it. I just didn’t want to say anything until I knew I got in. It’s a competitive program and I’ve been in a preschool for years. I wasn’t sure I was up to snuff for it and I didn’t want anyone to pity me if I didn’t get in.”

“Well, I suppose I understand that, but darling,” Lena said, taking Kara’s hands in hers, “how could you ever think you weren’t good enough? You’re a  _ wonderful _ writer. You’re creative, you’re smart, and you’re a hard worker. Of course you’d get into the program! But I still don’t understand what changed your feelings on the whole journalism profession.” Kara sighed heavily.

“I mean, I used to think of journalism as reporting on things  _ after _ they happened. But stuff now… it’s so much more complicated! We’ve got these huge issues with alien amnesty and refugees and immigrants from all borders… They’re big problems and they’re developing. People need to be kept informed of what’s happening, and they need to get it from someone they trust. When people are kept in the dark, democracy becomes tyranny.  _ That _ was what happened on Krypton. I’ve been reading the legal records from the pod that crashed and… so many problems could have been solved if the High Council had kept the public informed. They kept everyone in the dark until it was too late. I don’t want—I  _ can’t _ let that happen again.”

Lena watched the way Kara spoke: brows furrowed, jaw set, one hand gesturing and the other carefully pulling on Lena’s as if to gesture with the other. Lena could see the passion radiating out of Kara and she resolved to stop interrogating Kara about this seemingly sudden shift. Instead, she would put aside her bruised ego and nitpicking questions (when would Kara start? How long would it take? Would she be able to do it while taking care of two newborns and a potentially jealous six-year-old?) and support her wife.

“That’s amazing, Kara,” Lena said softly, tugging on Kara’s hand to kiss her knuckles. “You’re amazing. And I am very happy for you, in case that wasn’t clear enough,” she added after a moment. Without another word on the matter, they settled back into each other on the couch to start binge-watching the next season of  _ The Good Place _ .

 

“Mama, are you so excited? I’m so excited!” Lydia giggled. As promised, Lena and Kara had planned an outing for them and Lydia. It had taken some brainstorming to find something that Lydia would consider special that Kara would be able to do four months pregnant. They’d thought of horseback riding, trampoline parks, and an indoor ropes course before finding something that Kara could still do.

“I’m  _ very _ excited, baby. I’ve never been rock climbing before!” After consulting with the internet and with Alex, they agreed that Kara could safely rock climb. Ever since Kara became Supergirl, she and Alex had been training with the red sun lamps, so Kara’s upper body strength would be solid.

The ride to the indoor rock climbing gym had been a little long for Lydia who wriggled excitedly. She was starting`to grow out of the car seat back, so Kara made a mental note to remove the back piece later. Reaching back, Kara squeezed Lydia’s foot and grinned at her, turning back around just as Lena pulled into the parking lot.

“We’re here!” Lydia exploded, tugging at her seatbelt.

“Lydia Luthor, wait until the car is off to take off your seatbelt,” Lena said sternly. Lydia pouted, but waited the extra ten seconds for Lena to throw the car in park and take the key from the ignition. “Now you can unbuckle,” Lena said with a smile.

“Sorry, Mommy. I’m just so excited!” Lydia said, wiggling. She had gotten herself unbuckled, but the child locks kept her from being able to open the car door from the inside.

“I know, honey. I’m not mad, I just want you to be safe,” Lena pointed out as she grabbed the small backpack they were using to store their valuables. Kara hopped out of the car and opened the door for Lydia.

“Why don’t we leave Moony in the car, love?” Kara suggested, holding out a hand for Lydia to hold. Lydia clutched the stuffed moon toy close to her chest.

“But Moony wants to climb, too,” she said with just a hint of a whine in her voice.

“I bet he does, baby, but the rock climbing place doesn’t have harnesses for him, and he can’t climb without a harness. Plus, we wouldn’t want Moony to get lost or taken, right?” Kara explained. This was new, likely a reaction to the news of the babies and the fact that Kara was starting to show more obviously. Lydia had pretty much understood and agreed to the rules of leaving stuffed animals in the car when they went on adventures like this until the past few weeks. Lena worried Lydia was regressing because of the babies, but Kara was hoping they could reassure Lydia of their love and get her back to feeling more confident and comfortable again.

“He can share my harness!” she wheedled.

“That isn’t safe, Lydia,” Lena pointed out. She felt silly standing in the middle of the parking lot arguing with her daughter about a stuffed animal. 

“Okay,” Lydia sighed with a pout. She placed Moony back on her booster seat and took Lena’s hand. Reaching out with the other, she grabbed Kara’s hand.

“Turn that frown upside down, chickadee! We’re going rock climbing!” Kara said eagerly, swinging Lydia’s arm until the girl giggled, joining Kara in her excitement. As they crossed the parking lot, they swung Lydia between them, the activity causing a slight burn in Kara’s tricep that she’d never felt doing this before. Thankfully, it didn’t take long for them to get inside where Lydia was immediately more interested in gawking at her surroundings than she was in swinging on her moms’ arms.

The rock climbing gym was an old warehouse in the back of a strip mall parking lot that had been repurposed in the past five years. They stood near a long counter advertising ticket prices and events, behind which were rows of storage lockers and a sign for gear rentals. People emerging from the storage lockers wore colorful helmets, gloves, climbing shoes, and some kids even wore elbow and knee pads. Three short steps led up to the climbing area where structures lined the walls, stretching all the way to the high ceilings, some sticking out to force near-horizontal climbing surfaces as an extra challenge. Other areas boasted oddly shaped climbing structures, including one particularly kid-friendly pirate ship structure with rock climbing grips all around the outside. Lena and Kara knew from their research that there was also a plethora of benches and seats around the climbing walls for frequent breaks, as well as some more kid-friendly climbing structures tucked in the back corner, should any of these prove too challenging for Lydia.

“Oh my God,” Lydia gasped quietly. 

“Cool, right?” Lena grinned down at Lydia, squeezing her hand. Lydia just nodded wordlessly, eyes wide. Kara led them over to the counter, keeping one eye on Lydia who spun in small circles, bored out of her mind waiting for her moms to finish purchasing the tickets and filling out all of the necessary waivers (including an extra waiver for Kara to ensure she understood the risks associated with climbing while pregnant and signing away her rights to sue should something happen to the twins). Finally, they got their rental equipment (including helmets, climbing shoes, gloves, and elbow and knee pads for all three of them) and stowed away their belongings. Lydia was vibrating with excitement as she showed her climbing bracelet to the teenager working, even though he wasn’t checking them. He smiled encouragingly at her and directed them to another employee who would give them a tutorial in using the harnesses and safe climbing tips.

“I just wanna go climb. Why do we have to wait?” Lydia whined as they waited for their group to be called.

“We have to learn how to climb safely, sweetheart. Imagine what would happen if we just went ahead without knowing what we were doing,” Kara said, pausing a moment to let Lydia think about it. “People might get really hurt! You wouldn’t want that, would you?” 

Lydia huffed. “No.” She crossed her arms over her chest, so Lena and Kara just let her be, knowing that she would be fine in a minute or two once their group was called to go on the practice climbing wall. The wall was no more than fifteen feet tall, stretching thirty feet across the wall. There were foam mats on the ground, as there were all over the gym. They listened with rapt attention, Lydia eager to get to start climbing, as the instructor Fatimah showed them how to clip the mechanical belay ropes to their harnesses. She climbed a few feet up the wall before carefully jumping down, pushing gently off the wall and holding onto the rope as she slowly descended, landing on her feet, though she explained you could also let yourself land gently on your back if necessary.

Then came the fun part.

“Oh my God, Mama, how high am I?” Lydia giggled as she climbed up. Her head was just about even with Kara’s now as Lydia clung to the grips.

“Like,  _ so high _ , baby. Like, you’re practically in space,” Kara said. Lydia squealed. 

“Can I go higher?”

“Yes, love. Go a little higher so you can practice jumping down, remember?” Lena said, using her smart watch to take a video. Lydia mumbled softly to herself as she climbed even higher until she was near the top of the wall.

“Okay, now remember to put your feet flat against the wall,” Fatimah called up. “Then just let go of the hand holds and push off gently. Little kicks, okay? And hold onto the rope.” Lydia hesitated.

“Mommy,” Lydia called down. “Mama, I’m scared.”

“You’ll be okay sweetie, you can do it. You just saw Mama do it, remember? She was just fine. And you saw other people doing it,” Lena reminded her.

“What if it’s broken now and I fall?”

“It’s not broken, sweetheart, I promise,” Fatimah assured her. “I know it looks scary, but it’s so fun! It’s a little bit like flying.

“Could I climb up next to her? Like, on that belay system right there?” Lena pointed to the next belay device, only a few feet away. “I wanna see if I can get her to do it.”

“If that’s something you’re comfortable doing,” Fatimah nodded. “I can also do it, if you want.” 

“I can do it. Then, I get my training too, right?” Lena smiled wryly and Fatimah laughed, nodding. She watched as Lena hooked herself up before she started to climb. As she climbed up and over to where Lydia was still clinging to the handholds, Lena was aware of the other couple still waiting to get their training before they could start to climb. “Hi, love,” Lena whispered once she was close enough to Lydia. 

“‘M scared, Mommy,” she whimpered.

“Oh, I know, honey. It’s very scary to jump, isn’t it? I’m a little scared, too. But, you know what Mama and I say about scary things?” Lydia shook her head. “We can’t let the things we’re scared of stop us from doing things. We have to try new things and be brave. And if you don’t like it, we can go. We can get our shoes and leave and go get ice cream. But, we have to get down first. We could do it together, if you want?” Lena reached out one hand, holding tight to the grip with the other. Tentatively, Lydia reached out. Lena squeezed her hand. “On three, push off with your feet and grab onto your rope with  _ both _ hands, okay. I’m going to hold onto your hand, okay? And I’ll grab your rope  _ and _ my rope. That way, even if it is broken, mine will keep us from falling, okay?”

“Okay,” Lydia said softly. Lena scooted herself closer to Lydia, ready to grab onto the rope. She wasn’t certain this was the safest option, but if it got Lydia to the ground, she’d deal with the consequences later.

“Ready?” Lydia nodded. “One… two… three!” Lydia kicked off much harder than necessary, immediately clutching the rope. Lena spun slightly as she attempted to hold both ropes as they descended and Lena’s back hit the rockwall, the grips digging into her back. She was certain she’d have bruises by tonight. As they fell slowly, Lydia continued to kick off the wall, her terrified yelp transforming into giggles. When they landed, Lena was on her back and Lydia landed sitting upright on her butt, laughing excitedly. 

“Again!” she declared. Everyone laughed and the couple waiting for their turn clapped for Lydia.

(Fatimah quickly came over to warn Lena that in the future, grabbing onto someone else’s belay rope was grounds for being asked to leave the gym. Should Lydia get scared again, staff are equipped to do a controlled partner fall to bring her down. Lena apologized profusely, but Fatimah insisted it was alright, she just had to warn Lena in case her boss had seen that).

 

After two hours of climbing, Lydia had finally reached her limit. Her entire body was exhausted and her muscles were surely sore. Lena and Kara knew she had to be exhausted, but she seemed determined to stay awake as they drove home, stopping for ice cream on the way. Lydia was practically asleep by the time they got home, so they put on Netflix and snuggled together on the couch, Fish resting his head on Lydia’s feet, content to stay there as she slept through the entire movie. And if Lena and Kara took a little nap too, no one could blame them, cozy as they were snuggled under the blanket all together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for sticking with me! I know it's been a while since I updated! I think my next chapter will jump ahead to Christmas time, trimester 2 and moving into trimester 3 of the pregnancy! It won't be as long and detailed as a previous Christmas and Hannukah fic I wrote for this series, but are there any suggestions?


	6. Shower the Babies

Technically, Kara had been a late admission to her online program, so she missed the first two weeks’ classes. However, she was basically unemployed now that she quit working at Sunny Side and she was benched from being Supergirl, so she had plenty of time to make up the readings and coursework she had missed. It was only the first introductory class, so it wasn’t too much, but it was a refreshing challenge for Kara, who had been mostly working on the alphabet and colors, not hard-hitting journalism.

With the rest of her free time, Kara started reading parenting books, planning elaborate Pinterest boards for the nursery, and started making art projects on her own time. Kara had always enjoyed creating things, but that had fallen by the wayside as life got busier. In addition to clearing out a spare room for the nursery, Alex and Maggie helped Kara clear out another room to be her art studio. In that room, Kara kept everything from yarn crafts to scrapbooking materials to watercolors to oil paints and canvases. When Lydia wasn’t in school, she liked to be sitting with Kara in her studio or with Lena in her office as they worked and she did her homework or her daily reading.

Kara and Lena had worried that Lydia was getting clingier, regressing somewhat in the face of her mama’s pregnancy. Lydia’s therapy sessions for her PTSD had become less frequent, going from twice weekly to monthly or even every other month, but Lena wondered if they needed to start sending her more regularly. Kara wondered if Lena was making a mountain out of a molehill.

“I am not overreacting. Don’t tell me I’m overreacting. I’m not crazy,” Lena snapped, though her voice was hushed. Lydia was taking a bath down the hall, something she had only recently begun to do by herself. She had resisted it at first, wanting Mommy and Mama to help her and stay with her, but after a few nights of practicing, Lydia had finally started bathing by herself. Lena had waited until she was in the middle of her bath before bringing up therapy to Kara.

“Don’t put words in my mouth! I didn’t call you crazy! All I said was that I don’t think it’s a huge deal! She’s probably a little worried we won’t have time for her or love her once the babies come, so she’s clinging. When we show her that we do care, it’ll fix itself,” Kara explained, jaw clenched.

“If that’s true, then why don’t we use all our resources? Her therapist could help us reassure her that we love her and want to spend time with her.”

“Yes, and her therapist is the one who suggested we spend some time with her in the first place. She’s given us some suggestions already,” Kara pointed out. Lena huffed and ran a hand through her hair.

“Why are you fighting me so hard on this? It’s not like therapy is going to  _ hurt _ her,” Lena argued, crossing her arms over her chest.

“I know it won’t! But we’re doing okay. I mean… we’re not bad parents. We’re not!” Kara said, crossing her arms over her chest.

“Now you’re putting words in my mouth!” Lena hissed. “I never said we were bad parents.” Lena sighed, putting her head in her hands for a moment. “Kara, what is going on? What’s wrong?” Kara opened and closed her mouth a few times as her eyes started to water. She swallowed hard. “Kara, honey, you’re scaring me.” Lena reached out to grab Kara’s elbows, dragging her hands down Kara’s forearms to squeeze her hands.

“I… I’m worried… Are we being selfish?” Kara asked quietly. Lena gaped at her.

“What? Selfish? What are you talking about?” Lena asked, befuddled.

“Is it selfish to want more? Like, more kids? Because we have one really awesome kid, a great dog, a nice house… You have a stable job and we’re really…  _ really _ set, financially speaking, even with the charity work and the donations you organize. I mean… I’m happy with everything we have because we have a  _ lot _ . But I still… I want more. I’m happy about more kids, and I want them. Does that make me a selfish person?”

“Honey,” Lena said softly, reaching out to grab her wife by the hands but Kara just shook her head and wrapped her arms around herself. Lena sighed, crossing her arms over her chest, brow furrowed in concern. “Where is this coming from?”

“I don’t… I don’t know!” Kara exhaled heavily, tears filling her eyes. Kara sank onto the bed wearily. Lena moved to sit in front of the vanity, giving Kara space while waiting silently for Kara to gather her thoughts. “I don’t know. I just… On the later years of Krypton, birth rates were down. It was why they created the birthing matrix in the first place. I mean… looking back on it now, it was probably something to do with the raging pollution destabilizing our planet’s core, but still… My dad had a brother and my mom had a twin, but there weren’t many kids my age, and none of those kids had siblings. One child was… a gift from Rao. To want more was like… hubris, or something. Like… who’s the guy who flew too close to the sun?”

“Icarus?” Lena asked. Kara nodded.

“I just… I feel like Icarus and it’s all going to come crashing down and something will go wrong.” Kara said this last part in a rush as if forcing it out. She closed her eyes and bit her bottom lip, resting her hands on her belly.

“Okay, Kara. Thank you for explaining it to me,” Lena said gently. 

“Mommy! Mama! I’m ready to get out!” Lydia called from down the hall. Kara sniffled, trying to wipe the tears from her eyes, but it was clear she had been crying.

“I’ll go, you stay here, okay?” Lena stood and made her way forward to kiss Kara on the forehead. “I’ll take care of her, then we’ll talk about this more, okay?” Kara nodded, tears making tracks down her cheeks.

“Mommy!” Lydia called out again.

“I’m coming, sweetheart,” Lena called as she headed down the hallway. She helped Lydia out of the tub and wrapped her in a towel.

“What’s Mama doing?” Lydia asked as she got changed into her pajamas.

“She’s getting herself ready for bed.” Lydia hummed and chattered idly as Lena combed her hair and braided it.

“But it’s too early for grown-ups to go to bed.” Lydia kicked her feet gently, rubbing a hand back and forth over the soft fleece of her pajama pants. Lena laughed lightly as she tied off the braid, noting that Lydia may need to get her hair trimmed soon.

“She’s just putting jammies on. Plus, grown-ups can go to bed early if they’re tired,” Lena pointed out. “Why don’t you go play or read for a bit. You’ve got half an hour before it’s time to get in bed. I’ll set a timer, okay?”

“Why can’t you come play with me?” Lydia whined.

“Mama and I are having a grown-up talk, Lydia. We’ll be in to play as soon as we can, okay? Now, go and I’ll start a timer for you,” Lena urged. Lydia sighed before running off to her play room. “Hope,” Lena called, “set a timer for thirty minutes. Announce to Lydia when there are five minutes left in the timer.” Lena had no faith in other AI, not trusting the companies not to spy or sell her data. So, she made her own AI and wired it throughout her house, connecting it to smart watches for each of them. It was now one of their most popular products, likely because they made it known that their system would not be recording their audio, and they would never sell their customers’ data to third parties or use it for other untoward purposes. After living with the Luthors for so many years, Lena understood the value of feeling secure in your own privacy.

“ _ Yes, Ms. Luthor-Danvers,” _ the feminine voice said.

Lena returned to her bedroom to find Kara laying on the bed, pants discarded, Supergirl pajama pants on the bed next to her. One arm was draped over her face and she was sniffling. Lena quickly rushed over to sit next to Kara, laying a gentle hand on Kara’s arm.

“Kara, darling, you’re scaring me. What’s wrong? What happened?” There was an undercurrent of panic in her voice, Lena knew.

“My-my stupid p-pajama pants don’t-they don’t  _ fit _ ,” Kara sniffed pathetically. Lena exhaled in relief, letting her eyes close for a moment. “They don’t fit because I’m getting huge and I’m so stressed out and we haven’t even pulled out the Christmas and Hanukkah decorations and Lydia needs to go back to therapy and I feel selfish for being excited to have more kids and I’m  _ exhausted _ .” The words spill out in a rush, tumbling over each other. Lena is glad she held her tongue and managed not to say “is that all?” to her wife.

“It sounds like you’re having a lot of big feelings, dear,” Lena said neutrally.

“I know,” Kara siffed, sitting up. “I know I’m being ridiculous.” Lena ran a hand down Kara’s shoulder to grab her hand, scotting closer. 

“That’s not what I said. It’s not bad to have big feelings. We certainly have a lot going on at the moment, so it’s understandable. Plus, your hormones are out of whack. And I’m not trying to say that this is all your hormones! I’m just saying it might be making it a little more intense. Maybe, if you wanted, of course, you don’t have to do it, but I was thinking maybe if you wanted, we could see if there’s a DEO therapist or someone you could talk to about this.” Kara rested her head on Lena’s shoulder and sighed.

“I don’t know,” she whispered. 

“Just something to think about,” Lena reminded her gently. “But can I tell you something? You’re not selfish for wanting more kids. I mean… if anything, I think it makes sense that you’d want a big family. You’ve talked to me a bit about being… the last one who remembers Krypton. You lost your family, so of course you’d want to surround yourself with a big family, people who love you. Lots of little rugrats running around, a menagerie of animals… I just… I can see why you might want to have a big family. I feel the same, after all. I know it’s not the same, but I lost everyone who had ever been my family… my birth mom, my father, Lillian, Lex, Jack… Just… it’s okay to want more. It doesn’t mean we aren’t happy with our lives as they were.”

“What if Lydia thinks she’s not enough? What if the therapist finds out that… like, Lydia thinks she wasn’t good enough for us, and that’s why we’re having the twins?” Kara’s voice was small and scared and Lena knew this was likely the core of her fear.

“Then we reassure her that we love her. We do everything in our power to make sure she knows we love her, and that includes giving her the resources she needs.”

“Like her therapist?” Kara lets out a watery laugh.

“Like her therapist,” Lena confirmed with a smile. She kissed Kara’s temple. “And maybe someone for you to talk to?”

Kara sighed. “I’ll talk to Alex about it.”

“And as for the pajama pants,” Lena said, a teasing lilt in her voice, “all I can do for now is help you look for some looser sweatpants. We can go shopping for some maternity clothes or even just looser comfy clothes like this tomorrow, alright?” Kara laughed.

“Alright,”she agreed, turning to give Lena a soft, lingering kiss. “Thank you for putting up with my hormone craziness.”

“It is my greatest pleasure,” Lena assured her.

“Well, if  _ that’s _ your greatest pleasure, clearly I’m doing something wrong,” Kara joked. Lena hit her lightly on the chest, eyes wide and mouth open.

“Kara Luthor-Danvers!” she replied in a scandalized tone. “Get your mind out of the gutter and put some pants on! Lydia wants us to play with her before bed.” Lena tried to stand so she could find some looser pants for Kara, but Kara wrapped her arms around Lena’s waist and pulled her back down to the bed, shrieking with laughter. She held onto Lena as her wife wriggled and rolled over until she was on her side facing Kara, scooting down until they were nose to nose. 

“I love you,” Kara said, suddenly desperate for Lena to know how she felt.

“I love you,” Lena repeated gently. She leaned in to kiss Kara. “I love you so much.” She kissed her again, slow and lazy. When she pulled away, Kara leaned forward to chase her lips. “Let me help you find sweatpants so we can play with Lydia.”

“Okay,” Kara sighed, releasing Lena. Lena fished out a pair of loose drawstring sweatpants for Kara and they were able to play with Lydia for fifteen minutes before it was time to put her to bed. Lena and Kara fell asleep not long after, exhausted from their long day and the teary conversations.

 

The DEO did have one therapist on their payroll, but he was overworked already and seemed overwhelmed when Kara tried to briefly explain the things she needed to discuss. A regular human therapist couldn’t help her without Kara revealing her secret, and there was no point going to a therapist who she couldn’t really talk to. Of course, the growing alien population might offer some kind of therapist more suited to the needs of aliens, but Kara still wasn’t certain she could be completely honest with them either. Alex promised to start looking for someone trained to handle the depth of her own traumas.

Lydia, meanwhile, loved going back to her therapist. After a few solo sessions, Kara and Lena joined them for an update on her progress and a guided family discussion to help reassure Lydia of their love for her. It seemed to be working and they saw her growing more independent again, less anxious whenever she didn’t have her parents in her sights.

All the while life moved on. The holidays came and went. Lydia made more friends at school. Kara’s belly swelled more obviously as the babies grew. The first time Kara felt the babies move inside her, she had called Alex in a panic, rushing to the DEO for a checkup. Alex reassured her that everything was fine before sending her home. It took longer for Lena and Lydia to be able to feel the babies kick, but they felt it for the first time on the first night of Hanukkah. Lydia’s eyes were as wide as dinner plates.

“It’s like a little alien!” she exclaimed. Kara and Lena laughed. They certainly were like little aliens, in more ways than one.

Kara successfully finished her first semester of journalism courses with a renewed vigor, pleased with the intellectual challenge and the new sense of direction in her professional life. Sure, she would need to take a break once the babies were born, but it felt good to make even a small start. At the same time, Lena was in the process of training her CFO to take over some of her responsibilities once she went on maternity leave. They took a parenting class and brought Lydia to a sibling preparation class that would help her learn to hold the babies and prepare her for the change to their lives. When the time rolled around for the baby shower, it was all starting to feel extraordinarily real for Kara.

“I can’t believe we’re going to have two new babies within the next two months,” Kara sighed as they pulled up to the country club where the brunch would be held. Since they could certainly afford the major purchases for babies (cribs, changing tables, car seats, a play pen, high chairs, and the like), all Kara and Lena had requested were books and clothes for the babies, as well as donations of diapers and wipes for local homeless shelters.

“It still doesn’t quite feel real. Lydia didn’t feel very real for me until I was able to hold her in my arms,” Lena agreed. 

“But I am real, Mommy!” Lydia piped up from the back seat.

“Of course you are, dear. But sometimes, it’s hard to imagine what babies will be like when they’re still in someone’s belly. Once you hold them, they feel very, very real,” Lena explained.

“Well duh,” Lydia said.

“Don’t be fresh,” Lena warned while Kara tried not to laugh. “It’s rude to say ‘well, duh’.”

“Sorry Mommy,” she sighed. Lydia had been testing their limits lately, acting up and being snarky. Lena figured this was some kind of divine punishment for her own acerbic wit; she had passed the gift of sass on to her daughter. The therapist had explained that this was normal; as kids grew, they pushed the boundaries of their behaviors and misbehaviors. It could also be exacerbated by the upcoming birth of the twins; Lydia wanted to be certain they would love her even when she misbehaved.

“Thank you for apologizing. Are you excited for the party?” Lena turned around to smile at her and Kara glanced back in the rearview mirror.

“Yeah, but I thought it was called something else.” Lydia’s brow was furrowed and Lena recognized her wife in that expression.

“It’s called a baby shower, you’re right. And it’s not quite a party, I guess. Not like the birthday parties you go to,” Kara confirmed. “It’s a grown-up party, but Auntie Alex and Tia Maggie made sure there would be some fun activities for you, too.”

“Why’s it called a shower if we’re not taking a shower?

“Because,” Lena explained with a smile, “it’s about showering the family with presents for the baby. We get new stuff that we need and we get to celebrate with our family and friends.”

“Like my present! Auntie Alex took me to pick out a present for the babies and I kept it a surprise!” Lydia wiggled happily in her seat, beaming with pride. Lydia had never been the best at keeping surprises secret, always bubbling over with excitement and letting the secret slip.

“Oh my goodness, you’ve done such a great job at keeping this present a surprise! I had no idea!” Lena praised.

“You have to open my present as soon as we get there!”

“We can do that,” Kara promised as she pulled into a parking spot at the country club. “Now, let’s go inside and greet everyone!”

The country club banquet room was elegant and spacious with high ceilings and a large chandelier. There were several floor to ceiling windows looking out on a driving range, sprawling greens lined with towering trees. There was also a balcony looking over the course, though it was too chilly for them to really make any use of it. The club had offered heat lamps to make the balcony more tenable for their guests, but Alex and Maggie had declined after Kara and Lena assured them it wasn’t necessary.

There were several circular tables around the room with white table cloths with place settings. In the center of each table was a different winter animal stuffed toy, positioned in various fun winter activities. On the receiving table there were name tags for each guest indicating which table they were seated at. Neither Lena nor Kara had access to their baby pictures, Kara’s being destroyed on Krypton and Lena’s being forgotten in Ireland after Lionel took her to the Luthor mansion, so they had put Lydia’s baby pictures as well as various family portraits and memories on the table as decorations. Three tables were set up for the buffet on the right side of the room and a fourth table was piled high with cupcakes and cookies and donuts, all frosted in icy blues and whites. On the left wall, they had set up a gift table decorated with small Christmas trees frosted with fake snow, garlands and red ornaments. On the far wall there were several tables lined up with plain onesies and fabric paint, a onesie decorating station for the guests to create.

“Whoa,” Lydia gasped. “It’s so cool!”

“Super cool,” Kara agreed.

“Jamie!” Lydia squealed excitedly, running across the room to her cousin. Lydia had picked out a soft, gray cable-knit sweater dress with white tights and red flats. Her hair was straightened and pinned back with a red bow. Lena wore a navy blue dress with flowers all over it,  her hair curled and loose, flowing over her shoulders. Kara had chosen a woolen red and black plaid dress and kept her hair half up in a bun with the rest falling around her shoulder in soft waves. Alex and Maggie had both chosen black slacks, though Maggie’s were high waisted with a red top and a blazer over it while Alex chose a black and gold pinstripe shirt. Jamie was dressed in blue jeans and a green cable-knit sweater.

After the requisite greetings and hugs, Maggie and Alex showed the expecting parents around the room, showing off their decorations and explaining the plan for the event. Kara and Lena had arrived a few minutes early, per Alex and Maggie’s request, and the host from the country club came to go over a few more details regarding the meal and the eventual desserts. While they waited for the guests, Kara and Lena posed for pictures and took pictures of the decorations and set-up that they would post later.

“How’s Jamie been doing? I know she took the break-up pretty hard,” Lena asked. Alison broke up with Jamie shortly after the school year began, citing their age gap as the reason. Alison had started high school that year whereas Jamie was still in middle school. While they weren’t that far apart chronologically, Alison felt she was at a different place in her life, maturity-wise. Alex and Maggie secretly theorized that Alison may have gotten teased a bit for dating someone still in middle school, but they would never tell their daughter. For the first two months after the break-up, Jamie had been sullen, quick to anger and just as quick to cry. She had seemed better over the holidays, thankfully, but Lena felt for the girl.

“She’s been okay, I think. We might have gotten over the worst of it, hopefully,” Alex sighed, glancing around. “Everything feels so big and heart-wrenching in middle school.”

“Too many raging hormones and emotions,” Maggie agreed. “But she and Alison were cute together. I think the batting cages and softball training has helped.” Maggie thought that a sport would help Jamie. Soccer was over and Jamie had no interest in any winter sports, so Maggie agreed to help train her to join the middle school softball team in the spring. She and Alex took turns bringing her to the batting cages and practicing her catching and fielding. Alex even started taking her for runs to build up her endurance and speed.

“I do feel bad. It was so awkward buying a Christmas tree this year. Lydia  _ insisted  _  we go see Alison and her family at their farm. She got really attached, I guess,” Lena sighed, rubbing her temple. Poor Alison was dumbstruck when she saw the little family approaching. She looked like she considered sprinting away before Lydia beat her to it, running up and hugging the girl. Alison pasted a smile on her face and listened patiently as Lydia chattered at her incessantly. Kara and Lena quickly picked a tree to try and spare Alison from more awkwardness. Before they left, Kara pulled the teen aside.

_ “You know, we still care about you, right? We don’t blame you and we aren’t mad at you. Is it alright if I still come by your farmstand every once in a while? If it’s too awkward, I understand,” Kara had whispered. Alison just shrugged, barely able to meet Kara’s eye. _

_ “It’s okay. You can keep coming. I know how much you love our chocolate pecan pie.” She was shy and awkward, rubbing the toe of her boot on the back of her calf. “I’ve missed you guys. Jamie too. Can you… can you tell her I’m sorry?” _

_ “Of course,” Kara promised. Jamie nodded once before giving her a quick hug, dashing off into the tree grove. _

“Poor little thing,” Maggie sympathized.

“First loves always hurt the worst when they end,” Alex agreed. “But she did have a good time helping us with decorations. And she always has a good time playing around with Lydia.”

“She’ll be a good babysitter,” Maggie offered. Their conversation was interrupted as guests started arriving, hugging Kara and Lena.

For a while, Kara and Lena made the rounds and greeted their guests, thanking everyone for coming. They had decided on a co-ed shower which obviously increased the size of their party, but it was worth it. Winn was thrilled to show off the bookshelf he had designed for them, complete with temperature control, a lighting system, and a collapsible stool for little ones reaching for books on higher shelves. As guests came in, Lena and Kara marveled over the adorable outfits they brought and thanked them for the books before putting it on Winn’s bookshelf. Kara was in the middle of a discussion with Eliza when Lydia came running up.

“Mama!” she panted, breathless from running around with Jamie and Ruby, who had arrived with Sam a while ago. “Mama, we forgot about the present I picked out!” Jamie jogged up behind Alex with Ruby in tow, giving them a gap-toothed smile as she held out a present wrapped in jungle animal paper.

“Let’s go find Mommy so we can open it together, okay? Then I bet it’s time to eat!” The waiters had just finished putting out the trays of food and the country club host seemed to be looking around for Alex, Maggie, Kara, or Lena. Kara ignored his gaze, taking Lydia’s hand and leading her towards Lena, one hand on her belly. Ruby handed off the present to Lydia before skipping off to find her mom and Jamie took out her phone. They found Lena sitting at their table with Eliza, discussing one of Lena’s latest work projects.

“Mind if I steal my wife for a minute, Eliza? Lydia wants us to open her present,” Kara explained apologetically.

“Oh, of course, dear! Lena, we’ll discuss this later. Remind me to tell you about my friend Jax who works on this kind of stuff,” Eliza said, standing to go find someone else to chat with. 

“Thank you, Eliza,” Lena beamed before pulling Lydia into her lap. “Alright, baby, show us your present.” Lydia excitedly presented it to them to open. Lena held the object steady while Kara ripped at the paper until she revealed  _ Corduroy _ and  _ A Pocket for Corduroy _ .

“Look! And I can read almost all of the words in these books! I just need to practice the really hard ones, like the title, and I bet by the time the babies are born, I can read the books to them!” Lydia explained. Lena wrapped her arms around their daughter and squeezed her, kissing her cheek.

“That’s very sweet, Lydia. I bet the babies will love it when you read to them, especially as they get bigger,” Kara said, leaning forward to kiss Lydia’s forehead.

“Excuse me, you can start making your way over to the buffet now,” a young woman told them. They thanked her as she walked away and made their way to pile their plates high with food. As everyone ate and chatted, Alex and Maggie started explaining some of the games. Of course, participation was optional and many of the games were targeted towards the younger people in attendance. The onesie decorating stations would be open for the entirety of the party and people could wander over to make one in their own time. They also had a bottle full of mini M&M’s so that people could try and guess how many were inside; the person who got closest to the actual amount without going over would get to keep the candies. Jamie had come up with the idea for a baby bottle drink-off, challenging volunteers to race to finish the juice in a baby bottle, competing for a prize of a cozy fleece blanket. For the kids, they had a matching game to match up the baby animal names with the name for the mommy animal.

“A kitten’s mommy is a cat!” Lydia exclaimed as soon as she got the sheet.

“Duh,” Ruby said rolling her eyes. Lena and Kara shared a meaningful look.

“Ruby!” Sam chided. Ruby just sighed and rolled her eyes.

“Sorry, Mommy,” she said, saccharinely sweet. “Come on, Lydia. Let’s go count the M&M’s.” Abandoning their matching sheets, Ruby and Lydia ran over to where a few other guests were holding the baby bottle, shaking it and peering at it before trying to make a guess.

“Sorry about her. I think she’s picking up the sass from our new babysitter, some teenager from our neighborhood,” Sam explained. She rolled her eyes. “I am  _ not _ looking forward to the teen years with that one.”

“Yeah, teens are rough,” Alex laughed. “All those hormones really make them crazy. God bless our Mom for dealing with two of us.”

“Oh, great,” Lena laughed. “So in 13 years, we’ll be in for a real treat.” 

“You’ll get through it,” Eliza assured them as she returned from the onesie decorating table. “Just gotta find the balance between giving them privacy and making sure you’re keeping them out of trouble. I wasn’t always good at that,” she added with a self-deprecating laugh.

“We’re all just doing our best,” Alex nodded, smiling at her mother. Sure, they had their issues over the years, but Eliza and Alex had been working on talking things out more and working through their past difficulties.

“Can you say that last bit again? I missed it,” Kara said, scribbling furiously in a notebook.

“Kara, are you taking  _ notes _ ?” Alex asked, eyes narrowed in disbelief.

“You guys give good advice! I just want to remember it,” Kara said defensively. She pointed her pent at them. “You forget, I’ve never done this before.” 

“Love, you’ve been Lydia’s Mama for a few years now,” Lena laughed. “You’re doing a great job with her!”

“Yes, but by the time I met her, she was already three! She could walk and talk and… hold her head up… She had her shots and was on a sleep schedule. Newborns are so… fragile!” The implication sank in for those at the table who knew her secret.

“They’re actually sturdier than you think,” Sam noted, oblivious to Kara’s real worries. “I mean, don’t go tossing them around like a football, but you’ll learn how to handle them. Are you guys signed up for any parenting classes? Those really saved me when I found out I was pregnant with Ruby.”

“Yes, we signed up for a few courses over at the community center, plus Kara found this online site with classes for people expecting twins. And of course, Kara has read every parenting book she can get her hands on,” Lena teased.

“I like to be prepared,” Kara said with a bashful shrug.

“Oh, I did the same thing when I was pregnant, honey,” Lena smiled, leaning in to kiss Kara’s cheek.

“Alright, love birds, it’s time to start the games. I’m gonna go gather volunteers for the bottle drink-off. Anyone here want to participate?” Maggie asked, standing. Alex and Eliza joined her, going around to the tables to explain the game and gather the volunteers while Sam went to set up some chairs in the middle of the room where everyone could watch.

“We should go visit with more of our guests,” Lena whispered. Kara nodded and they stood, wandering to a table with open seats to sit down and watch the game, laughing with their friends. I the end, Alex, Maggie, and Eliza managed to corral a dozen people for this game: Lydia, Ruby, J’onn, Winn, Jess, Lucy, Lois and Clark, Nia who was a classmate that Kara had grown close with, and some of Lena’s employees who had followed her through the merger as she took over Luthor Corp. Maggie showed off the blanket like Vanna White as Alex explained and introduced the game to the group and Sam passed out the bottles to the participants, instructing them to hold it with two hands between their legs on the seat of the chair.

“Ready… set… go!” Alex counted down. Everyone whooped and cheered as they started sucking down the juice as quickly as they could, faces screwed up in consternation. Some, like Lucy and Lois, were extraordinarily competitive, but the Lane sisters’ desire to beat each other led to sabotage attempts that only slowed them down. Others, like J’onn and Clark, were drinking more leisurely after being cajoled into joining. Nia was the first to slam her bottle down, raising her arms in victory.

“Congratulations, Nia,” Eliza laughed as she handed over the blanket, which Nia promptly snuggled to her face.

“Perfect for napping,” Nia beamed, punctuating the statement with an exaggerated yawn. They announced that Lucy had come the closest to guessing the M&M’s, guessing there were 1,638 candies in the baby bottle. Lois had tried to beat her by adding two to Lucy’s guess, but she had guessed too high. Lena and Kara corralled Lydia who was on a sugar high after Jamie, Ruby, and a few of the other kids (children of Lena’s coworkers, mostly) raided the dessert table. 

“Mama, Mommy, we’re playing tag!” Lydia whined, squirming on Lena’s lap.

“I thought you wanted to help us look through the presents? Don’t you want to see all the cute books and clothes we got for the babies?” Kara offered.

“Yeah!” Lydia sighed. “But I’ll miss tag.”

“Don’t worry, Lydia,” Jamie said, panting as she jogged by the table, pausing for a moment. “I’ll grab the others to watch you guys open stuff and we’ll take a break from tag.”

“Cool!” Lydia smiled. “Let’s go, come on!” Lydia hopped off of Lena’s lap, grabbing both of their hands and tugging them towards the gift table. Alex and Maggie kept track, writing down who gave which onesies, pairs of pajamas or pants, sweaters, socks, dresses, overalls, shorts, sweatpants, and cold weather clothes. They got countless books to read, including a set of Kryptonian myths illustrated and printed in both Kryptonese and English hand bound by Eliza and Alex. After cooing over the gifts they received, they thanked everyone graciously for them and for the donations they had made, piling them high in boxes that Kara, Lena, Alex, and Maggie would distribute to different shelters around National City over the weekend. Lydia ran around for one last round of tag with the other kids as guests started packing up, the festivities winding down. By the time everyone had left, Lydia had come down from her sugar high and was crashing, cranky and irritable and exhausted, though she denied it any time anyone mentioned it.

“I’m not cranky!” Lydia snapped peevishly when she overheard Alex whisper the word to Maggie. She stomped her foot and pouted, crossing her arms over her chest.

“Lydia Jacqueline!” Lena said firmly, pausing as she gathered books in her arms to take out to their car.

“I’m not,” she whined, dragging out the word and rubbing her eye with a fist. Lydia inhaled sharply and glanced at Kara who was halfway out the door with gift bags of clothes on each arm. Lena nodded her forward before putting down the books.

“Come here please, Lydia,” Lena said firmly, walking out of the room and into the country club foyer. She paused by the doorway, waiting for Lydia who had yet to move. “ _ Now _ , Lydia.” The child groaned and stomped toward her mother. Lena gestured for her to follow and led Lydia to a corner of the foyer where they would have privacy; Lydia had recently started feeling anxious and embarrassed whenever she was scolded in front of others, so Lena and Kara tried to keep it as private as possible to prevent this.

“I’m sorry, Mommy,” Lydia whined, sniffling and rubbing her eyes.

“Thank you for apologizing, but we still need to discuss this. I understand that you might be tired and cranky since it was a big day. You had a lot of sweets, too, which I’m sure didn’t help,” Lena said pointedly, sinking down to her knees to be on Lydia’s level. Lydia nodded sheepishly. “But it is  _ not okay _ to get angry at other people who didn’t do anything. We don’t stomp our feet at people, either.”

“I’m sorry I was cranky, Mommy,” Lydia whimpered, tears leaking out of her eyes. She hugged herself around the waist, swaying back and forth as if self-soothing. “And I’m sorry I stomped and yelled at Auntie Alex. I’ll never, ever, ever,  _ ever _ do it again.” Lena laughed lightly.

“You’ll probably do it again, honey. Even grown-ups still get cranky when they’re too tired or hungry,” Lena explained. “But we can try not to let ourselves get to that cranky point, right?” Lydia nodded earnestly. “Come here, love.” She pulled Lydia in for a tight hug, rubbing her back. “When we go back in there, you’re going to apologize to Auntie Alex for snapping and stomping your foot. Then, you’re going to help us pack up the cars and when we go home, you’ll go up to your room for a ten minute time-out. During that time, you’ll think about what you did, and start thinking about some ways you can stop yourself from getting to that point where you’re yelling and stomping. We’ll discuss those strategies and how we’re going to practice them before you can play.”

“Okay,” Lydia sighed into her mother’s shoulder. Lena stayed there hugging Lydia until her daughter pulled away. Lydia grabbed Lena’s hand and led her back into the event room, dropping it as she approached Alex. Lydia spoke too softly for Lena to hear, but she could tell from the way Alex smiled softly at her and hugged her that the apology had been genuine. They quickly finished packing up the cars and headed home where Lydia changed into play clothes before Lena started her time-out countdown. Lena explained the situation to Kara in the meantime.

“I think she just needs to rest,” Lena sighed. “She  _ definitely _ needs to go to bed early tonight if she doesn’t nap.”

“ _ I _ need a nap,” Kara chuckled exhaustedly. “Hope, how much time is left on Lydia’s timer?”

“ _ There are two minutes and twelve seconds left on Lydia’s timer _ ,” the mechanical voice announced.

“Thank you, Hope,” Kara mumbled.

“ _ You’re welcome, Kara _ .” Lena smiled; despite the fact that Hope was an AI, not a person, Kara still treated it with respect. Lena loved her wife.

When the timer ended, they found Lydia sniffling on her bed, hugging Moony and Chewy to her chest. Lena and Kara went to sit on either side of their sleepy little girl, soothing her with cuddles. Once Lydia had stopped sniffling, Lena asked what Lydia thought they should do when she’s feeling cranky like this afternoon.

“Time out?” Lydia suggested, shrugging.

“Can you explain it a bit more, bug? How would the time out help you before you start yelling at people?” Kara asked gently.

“Um, ‘cause, like… if I get time outs when I yell, then I won’t yell because I don’t like time outs.” Lydia bit her lower lip, looking very much like her Mommy when she did.

“Okay,” Lena said with a patient smile. “But what’s something you can do when you start to feel yourself getting upset? How can we calm down when you’re cranky and tired like that?”

“Ohhh,” Lydia whispered. She paused for a moment, tapping her chin thoughtfully. “Maybe I can go take a nap! And if I can’t nap, like I’m at school or something? I can go to the bathroom and close my eyes for a few minutes. Like a mini-nap,” Lydia suggested.

“I think that sounds like a great idea,” Kara praised. “Sometimes we just need some space by ourselves to relax so we don’t yell at people when we’re cranky.”

“Right, and Mama and I can help you. If you want, we can remind you about our plan when we think you might be getting cranky and needing a break. Does that sound okay?” Lena continued. Lydia nodded, leaning into Lena’s side. “Okay, well your punishment is over now. Do you want to go play?”

“Wanna color, Mama,” Lydia mumbled. Lena considered suggesting a nap before thinking better of it; if Lydia wanted to power through the day, she and Kara would just ensure she went to bed early instead. “Can I color some pictures for the babies to put in their room when we decorate it?”

“That sounds like a great idea, love bug,” Kara beamed. “Let’s go get some paper.” The nursery was only half finished, painted a pale green with animals painted on the walls just below the ceiling, a parade of creatures circling the entire room. On one wall, Kara had painted a full rainbow with a leprechaun (that looked suspiciously like a cartoon version of Lena) and a pot of gold under one end. While the paint had long dried, they had yet to move in any of the furniture they’d purchased. Lena couldn’t wait until they found the time to actually arrange the room. Once they had done that, everything would start to feel real.

Soon enough, she would be holding their twins; Lena couldn’t  _ wait _ .

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Getting ready to wrap this up! Babies should be born in the next chapter or two then bringing the babies home! I might skip around, do a couple of time jumps to show how the babies are growing and adjusting and stuff.. Not sure. This series has really taken on a life of its own! Anyway... I start student teaching soon, so updates will be sporadic....... but aren't they always? Lol thanks for reading! 
> 
> Also, if anyone has some thoughts on names for the twins... I'm struggling. Do I want to keep up the L-name theme? Or maybe do something like names that have L nicknames or names that sound like L? Like Elliot? Or Eleanor and they call her Elle? Or some other name that has some kind of special meaning for them? Can't decide...


End file.
